FRIDAY - WATCHING THE SUNRISE FROM BED
- To-Dos: Your December Home Checklist
- Americans Spent More on Housing, Health Care Last Year
- 40 percent of young adults who live on their own still get money from parents
- Lack of Affordable Options Will Drive First-Time Buyers Out to the Suburbs in 2016
- Growing Economy Will Lead to Rising Interest Rates Soon
- Palo Alto prepares to ban two-story homes in Greer Park North
- 16 Little Indulgences to Enhance Your Every Day
Enjoy!
Americans Spent More on Housing, Health Care Last Year - The Commerce Department reports that housing and utilities and health care accounted for almost one-third of the rise in consumer spending nationwide in 2014. This confirms fears that rising housing costs are at least partly squeezing out some discretionary spending. Across all states, spending on housing and utilities grew 4.1 percent in 2014, with North Dakota posting the biggest rise at 8 percent. Nationwide, spending was up 4.2 percent last year versus 3.1 percent in 2013.
40 percent of young adults who live on their own still get money from parents - More than 40 percent of young adults between the ages of 25 and 32 who don’t live at home still receive some sort of financial help from their parents. This lack of financial independence was analyzed in in the journal Social Currents by Anna Manzoni, an assistant professor of sociology at North Carolina State University. Manzoni also found that attending a four-year educational institution makes people more likely to rely on mom and dad, especially those from higher socioeconomic backgrounds. Notably, those who received financial aid from their parents during college are also more likely to live with their parents post-grad than those who paid for school on their own.
Lack of Affordable Options Will Drive First-Time Buyers Out to the Suburbs in 2016 - A lack of affordable homes near city centers will push new and first-time home buyers to suburbs that feel like walkable, amenity-rich mini-cities, according to Zillow’s 2016 Housing Market Predictions. Rising rents will force more young renters to wait longer before buying a home, and the looming threat of rising mortgage interest rates will slowly erode some of the terrific mortgage affordability the market has enjoyed for the past few years.
Growing Economy Will Lead to Rising Interest Rates Soon - For nearly seven years, federal benchmark interest rates have been hovering around zero, but UCLA economists are predicting that the Federal Reserve will start lifting benchmark interest rates very soon as the economy continues along a measured growth path.
Palo Alto prepares to ban two-story homes in Greer Park North - Greer Park North is dominated by one-story homes developed mid-century by Joseph Eichler. Residents in this Midtown enclave are concerned that taller homes will affect their privacy and damage the neighborhood's Eichler character. To prevent new two-story homes from entering the area, residents have petitioned for a "single-story overlay," a zoning designation that prohibits two-story homes.
16 Little Indulgences to Enhance Your Every Day - You don't have to go to great lengths or expense to make your home feel sumptuous and yourself feel special. Some of my favorites:
