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[ad_1] Pending home sales in November were unchanged compared with October and 5.2% lower than November of last year, according to the National Association of Realtors. The reading, which is based on signed contracts during the month, is a forward-looking indicator of closed sales as well as the most current look at what potential homebuyers are thinking. Mortgage rates are key in this report, with the average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage soaring over 8% in mid-October before dropping sharply to 7.5% in the first week of November, according to Mortgage News Daily. It ended the month around 7.25%. Analysts had expected the drop to cause a slight gain in pending sales, but apparently it wasn't enough, given steep home prices and tight supply. "Although declining mortgage rates did not induce more homebuyers to submit formal contracts in November, it has sparked a surge in interest, as evidenced by a higher number of lockbox openings," said Lawrence Yun, NAR...

[ad_1] Craig Warga | Bloomberg | Getty Images Manhattan apartment sales fell by 29% in the fourth quarter, sparking fears of a frozen market in which buyers and sellers stay on the sidelines due to economic and rate fears. There were 2,546 sales in the quarter, down from 3,560 last year, according to a report from Douglas Elliman and Miller Samuel. The decline was the largest since the third quarter of 2020, during the depths of the pandemic. Prices also declined for the first time since early 2020, with the median price down 5.5%. The declines in both sales and prices mark the end of the roaring comeback in Manhattan real estate after the worst days of the pandemic and raise fears of continuing weakness into the new year. Rising interest rates, a weaker economy and a falling stock market, which has an outsized impact on Manhattan real estate, are all likely to weigh on the market this year. Analysts say their big worry is a prolonged standoff between buyers and sellers — with sel...

[ad_1] A residential neighborhood in Austin, Texas, on Sunday, May 22, 2022. Jordan Vonderhaar | Bloomberg | Getty Images The average rate on the popular 30-year fixed mortgage dropped to 6.57% on Monday, according to Mortgage News Daily . That's down from a rate of 6.76% on Friday and a recent high of 7.05% last Wednesday. Mortgage rates loosely follow the yield on the 10-year Treasury , which fell to a one-month low in response to the failures of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank and the ensuing ripple through the nation's banking sector. In real terms, for a buyer looking at a $500,000 home with a 20% down payment on a 30-year fixed mortgage, the monthly payment this week is $128 less than it was just last week. It is still, however, higher than it was in January. So what does this mean for the spring housing market? In October, rates surged over 7%, and that started the real slowdown in home sales. But rates then started falling in December and were near 6% by t...

[ad_1] A man enters a building with rental apartments available in New York City. Eduardo Munoz Alvarez | VIEW press | Corbis News | Getty Images Median rents in Manhattan hit a new record in January as a strong job market and limited supply of apartments lifted prices. The median rental price rose 15% to $4,097 from the year-earlier month — the highest ever in January, according to a report from Douglas Elliman and Miller Samuel . The average rent in Manhattan was $5,142, up 13% over January 2022. Analysts and real estate experts had expected rents to start falling in January after record surges late last year. But despite a cooling economy and high-profile layoffs in finance and tech, rental demand in Manhattan remains strong. "We're not seeing rents fall in any meaningful way" said Jonathan Miller, CEO of Miller Samuel, a real estate appraisal and research company. "They're really just moving sideways." Analysts say the main driver for Manhattan...

[ad_1] The lender on Friday also revealed that poverty in Pakistan shot up to 39.4% as of last fiscal year with 12.5 million more people falling into the trap due to poor economic conditions. About 95 million Pakistanis now live in poverty. The Washington-based lender unveiled the draft policy notes that it prepared with the help of all stakeholders for the next government. The lender identified low human development, unsustainable fiscal situation, over-regulated private sector, agriculture and energy sectors as the priority areas for reforms for the next government. It proposed measures – immediately increase the tax-to-GDP ratio by 5% and cut expenditures by about 2.7% of GDP – aimed at putting the unsustainable economy back on a prudent fiscal path. However, the measures suggested were mostly in areas that had been considered as “sacred cows”. “The World Bank is deeply concerned about the economic situation of today,” Tobias Haque, the WB’s lead country economist, said....

[ad_1] Despite the cooling market , many homeowners made money selling their property in 2022 — and part of that windfall may be taxable. Home sellers made a $112,000 profit on the typical sale in 2022, a 21% increase from 2021, and a 78% jump from two years ago, according to ATTOM , a nationwide property database.  While most sellers fall under the thresholds for capital gains taxes , high-dollar home sales or long-term ownership can trigger an unexpected bill, experts say. More from Smart Tax Planning: Here's a look at more tax-planning news. Here's how it works: Home sales profits are considered capital gains, with federal tax rates of 0%, 15% or 20%, depending on your 2022 taxable income. (You calculate "taxable income" by subtracting the greater of the standard or itemized deductions from your adjusted gross income.) As a single home seller, you can exclude up to $250,000 of your profit from capital gains taxes and you can shield up to $500,000 as a married ...

[ad_1] Kyla Wright's original plan was to complete her master's degree, move out of her parents' home and rent an apartment somewhere in Detroit. But once she started looking for rental units, her mother — a landlord — suggested buying instead.  Wright took the advice and, in December 2021, she bought a $99,000 home in the Detroit suburb of Southfield. Wright, now 25, is the only person in her social circle who owns a home. But on a national scale, her decision is becoming increasingly common. Women who live alone, like Wright, own millions more homes than their male counterparts, despite typically earning less than men do.  Kyla Wright of Southfield, Michigan bought a two-bedroom home after prompting from her mother. Wright is one of millions of single women in the U.S. who own a home.  Ninotchka Jackson-Wright Single women own roughly 10.7 million home...

[ad_1] Demand for mortgages increased for the second straight week , despite some volatility in mortgage rates. Total application volume rose 6.5% last week compared with the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's seasonally adjusted index. The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($726,200 or less) decreased to 6.71% from 6.79%, with points falling to 0.79 from 0.80 (including the origination fee) for loans with a 20% down payment. That was the average, but mortgage rates were largely higher for most of the week before dropping sharply Friday on news of the Silicon Valley Bank failure. Despite rates being higher, mortgage applications to purchase a home rose 7% for the week but were still 38% lower than the same week a year ago. Homebuying basically stalled in early February, after rates rose about a full percentage point, but buyers seem to be coming back now, perhaps because they are concerned...

[ad_1] San Jose, California — Matthew Richmond makes a good living running a successful pest control company in Northern California's Silicon Valley. "I'm living the American dream," the 32-year-old told CBS News. Richmond can afford to pursue his passion for adventure. If he wants to buy a motorcycle or dirt bike, "I can go write the check and buy it," he said.  However, what he has not purchased is a home, even though he says he could afford one. "Somehow, we've been led to believe that you have to own a home in order to be living the American dream," said Ramit Sethi, host of the Netflix series "How to Get Rich." "And that's just not true. For a lot of people, renting can actually be a better financial decision." A study released  last month from Realtor.com found that U.S. median rental prices dropped in May for the first time since the start of the COVID-19...

[ad_1] A Burlington and a Bed Bath & Beyond store. Getty Images Bed Bath & Beyond locations across America will soon be replaced by Burlington Stores outposts and a range of other businesses, after the failed home goods retailer auctioned off its leases as part of its bankruptcy proceedings , court records show.  The doomed big-box store selected bidders for 109 of its leases after a Monday auction. Off-price giant Burlington agreed to take over 44 of the locations for $12 million, the largest share of the leases, records filed late Tuesday show.  Burlington secured six more leases for $1.53 million outside the auction process, bringing the total number of locations to 50 for $13.53 million, records show.  Many of the locations are considered "top notch," said Bill Read, executive vice president of commercial real estate firm Retail Specialists. The firm provides retailers in growth mode an opportunity to snag leases in prime locations amid a dearth of quality ...