President Donald Trump has floated proposals to make it easier for Americans to pull from their 401(k) retirement accounts to buy a home — framing the idea as a way to boost homeownership and financial stability. But financial experts say the strategy could undermine long-term financial security, particularly as housing costs rise and retirement savings gaps widen, according to a recent report from...

The federal tax bill passed in mid-2025 includes a provision marketed as “no tax on Social Security,” but it does not eliminate taxes on benefits. Instead, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act expands deductions for older Americans, potentially reducing federal taxes for many retirees, a finance leader recently explained. A blog post by Luke Delorme — director of financial planning at Tableaux...

AmeriTrust Mortgage Corp. has appointed Shea Pallante as chief revenue officer as the lender pursues a growth strategy that includes expanding into nondelegated correspondent channels and more than doubling its monthly origination volume. A mortgage industry veteran, Pallante joins AmeriTrust from non-QM wholesale lender Brokers First Funding. He previously served as president of now-defunct non-QM...

President Donald Trump’s executive order restricting large institutional investors from purchasing single-family homes has broad – even bipartisan – political appeal. Still, most housing experts doubt that it will exert a significant impact on affordability. The order could also pose risks for builders that have made a practice of selling in bulk to institutional investors in for-sale communities,...

It is no secret that the National Association of Realtors (NAR) has faced its fair share of legal challenges over the past few years. From the commission lawsuits, to an investigation by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to lawsuits over the three-way membership agreement and the now defunct, optional no-commingling rule, NAR’s legal team has been busy. As the association looks to regroup after these...

A lot of today’s most popular home design trends are built for one thing: looking good in photos. They’re airy. Minimal. Sculptural. Sometimes even intentionally off-balance — leaning mirrors, floating shelves, cantilevered furniture, tall décor perched on narrow bases. And if no one in the house is under four feet tall and fueled purely by curiosity? No problem. But add a toddler into that...

Naples has plenty of homes that claim they’re the total package. But Aqualane Shores is one of the few neighborhoods that can back it up. A newly completed custom waterfront estate at 2231 Forrest Lane has just hit the market for $12.5 million, bringing a fresh, state-of-the-art build into one of Naples’ most coveted corridors — where residents can actually walk to the beach, stroll over to...

Some homes have naturally high ceilings. Others just feel like they do — and that difference is almost always design. Ceiling height is one of the biggest drivers of how expensive and open a space feels, but it doesn’t always come down to construction. It comes down to what the eye is being encouraged to notice. Interior designers understand this instinctively. They know how to stretch vertical...

This easy DIY beadboard installation brought my bathroom back to 1917 and only took one...

The low, beamed ceiling in this room in a centuries-old English house presented a challenge for kitchen specialist firm Chisholm Design. They had been tasked with creating a kitchen here where there once was none. In doing so, they needed to incorporate plentiful storage without the space feeling...