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100 Species of Bugs Live in Your Home

Don't fret: Most are harmless, say scientists

(Newser) - You thought Asian camel crickets were bad. A new report in journal Peer J finds hundreds of bugs likely lurk in your home, including spiders, beetles, ants, and book lice. Scientists got down on their hands and knees and combed 50 houses in the suburbs of Raleigh, NC, picking up...

What the Dust in Your House Says About You

Our dust contains, on average, 9K unique species of microbes

(Newser) - Last year, volunteers mailed in dust samples taken from above interior and exterior door frames in 1,200 homes across the US as part of a citizen science project called Wild Life of Our Homes . Now, scientists are reporting in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B that our...

How a Whole House Can Fit in a 10-Foot Cube

Cubitat is a 'plug and play' home that fits in a room

(Newser) - A team of builders and designers have created what is essentially a house that can fit in a room. Cubitat is a 10-by-10-by-10-foot cube, and it's got practically everything you need built in, Treehugger reports. One side has a whole kitchen, with a sink, dishwasher, fridge, and more, all...

Dear US, Make People Pay for Their Own Houses

Government has too many mortgage subsidies, argues New Yorker writer

(Newser) - Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac announced last month they would guarantee mortgages for first-time home buyers who put down only 3%. It's another move by the US government to encourage homeownership—along with tax breaks, mortgage-interest deductions, property tax write-offs, etc.—and must be a good thing, yes?...

New Real Estate Behemoth: Zillow Buys Trulia for $3.5B

All-stock deal may drastically affect real estate agents' livelihood

(Newser) - Apparently, we're starting the workweek with competitors eating each other for breakfast. First Dollar Tree announced it would be buying rival Family Dollar, and now real estate heavyweight Zillow is snatching up competitor Trulia for a hefty $3.5 billion, reports the AP . The all-stock deal will result in...

'World's Thinnest House' Unveiled in Warsaw

Urban home is just 5 feet at its widest

(Newser) - The future of urban living may be just a few feet wide, says Polish architect Jakub Szczesny, creator of the "world's narrowest home." The Warsaw home, squeezed into a narrow gap between two buildings, is five feet wide at its widest and three at its narrowest, but...

Florida Estate Sells for Record $47M

Miami-Dade property has a beach imported from Bahamas

(Newser) - Another sign that luxe housing is making a rebound? A Florida estate has sold for $47 million, a record for Miami-Dade County, reports the Wall Street Journal . The buyer was an unidentified Russian. The newly built estate was initially on the market for $60 million, but even with the price...

London Sets Record for Luxury Home Sales

Foreign buyers are pouring in money to escape volatility at home

(Newser) - The market for London's most luxurious homes is skyrocketing as foreign buyers, seeking safe investments, swoop in to purchase the city's priciest residences. Sales of properties worth more than $8 million spiked 31% to a record 262 in the past year, reports Businessweek . House-hunters hailing from the Middle...

Edwards' Hideaway: Charity Work in El Salvador

Scandal-plagued ex-candidate builds houses without fanfare

(Newser) - Most politicians trekking to El Salvador to build homes for the poor would be milking their good works for good publicity, but for John Edwards it looks more like a way to escape the media’s glare. Edwards took his third trip to the country last week, but he’s...

Mortgage Defaults Top 1M, Keep Rising

Even those with lowered payments are defaulting

(Newser) - The number of troubled home loans continued to rise in the third quarter, despite the Obama camp's efforts to stem the tide by mortgage modification. For the first quarter ever, the number of homes in foreclosure with mortgages serviced by US banks topped the 1 million mark, the Los Angeles ...

Tough Times Threaten New England's Triple-Deckers

Foreclosures, neglect thin the ranks of distinctive homes

(Newser) - The distinctive three-decker homes found throughout urban New England are swiftly becoming an endangered species, the New York Times reports. The homes—mostly built around a century ago to accommodate new immigrants—were snapped up by investors in boom times who rented them out without doing any maintenance. They are...

Attorneys Learn Loan Law to Help Homeowners

(Newser) - Lawyers nationwide are learning about foreclosure law to help new clients keep their homes, NPR reports. Housing attorneys are even teaching seminars to lawyers, who accept cases pro bono, knowing homeowners can't turn to swamped legal aid offices. Some find it "incredibly rewarding to help someone save their house...

Economy Forces 'Boomerang Kids' Back Home

Experts fear financial strain of dependent, adult kids

(Newser) - After losing their jobs and homes, some middle-aged adults are losing something else—independence from their parents, the Washington Post reports. The recession is forcing so-called “boomerang kids” back into their childhood homes, raising questions about how easily parents can accommodate refilled nests amid tough economic times. "It's...

March New Home Sales Down 0.6%
March New Home Sales Down 0.6%
Apr 24, 2009 11:09 AM CDT

March New Home Sales Down 0.6%

But that's good news: Numbers are actually better than expected

(Newser) - New US home sales dipped slightly last month but still beat expectations as builders start to see long-awaited encouraging signs about the housing market—including a dip in the inventory of new homes for sale. Sales fell 0.6% in March to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 356,000,...

Feel Good Again About Your Pricey House
Feel Good Again About
Your Pricey House
OPINION
Aug 17, 2008 7:59 PM CDT

Feel Good Again About Your Pricey House

In 10 years, you'll be back in the black

(Newser) - Bought an expensive house right before the subprime crash? Fret not, writes Chris Ayres in the Los Angeles Times. With 5% inflation, lower interest rates, and a mortgage tax deduction, buyers of pricey houses will be smiling in 10 years. "If you're a boom-time buyer who can still pay...

Arsonist May Have Set Fla. Fires

Gov declares state of emergency, promises harsh consequences

(Newser) - Fires that have raged across Florida over the last 2 days may have been deliberately set, Gov. Charlie Crist said today. Investigators have pointed to the fact that many of the blazes in different places sprang up at once as evidence of arson, CNN reports. Almost 100 homes have been...

Sierra Madre Blaze Rages On
 Sierra Madre
 Blaze Rages On 
Apr 28, 2008 6:49 PM CDT

Sierra Madre Blaze Rages On

Firefighters losing containment on difficult terrain

(Newser) - A California wildfire that has sparked mass evacuations kept burning up Sierra Madre today, the Los Angeles Times reports. Officials said the blaze was 23% contained, compared to 30% last night, and four of 580 firefighters have suffered minor injuries—but there are no fatalities so far. The fire now...

Maybe You Shouldn't Own a Home
Maybe You Shouldn't
Own a Home
OPINION
Apr 20, 2008 3:08 PM CDT

Maybe You Shouldn't Own a Home

Wake up, America: Not everyone can afford the white picket fence

(Newser) - Should all Americans own their dream home? Not really, writes Joshua Riner in the New Republic—only those who can afford one. But Washington made homebuying easy, sparked the subprime crisis, and is now making things worse by buying up risky mortgages. Officials "need to replace the dream of...

10 Lies Homeowners Tell Buyers
10 Lies Homeowners Tell Buyers
Feb 8, 2008 6:41 PM CST

10 Lies Homeowners Tell Buyers

Few are above making a fib or two part of the sales pitch

(Newser) - When a homeowner is desperate to sell and a buyer is ready to fork over the cash, the truth about a house is often swept under the rug, MSNBC reports. Watch out for frequent fibs when talking about:
  1. Personality of neighbors and the neighborhood.
  2. Status of home repairs (particularly the
...

Homeowners Lure Free Labor With Libations

Remodeling parties are a risky new rage

(Newser) - Word of advice: Cocktails and power tools don't mix. Renovation parties are sweeping the nation, as homeowners look for ways around rising construction costs. But handing out martinis and sledgehammers doesn’t always produce the best results, the Wall Street Journal counsels, recounting horror stories of crooked tiles, drywall hung...

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