A decade ago, luxury home buyers asked about wine cellars, fitness rooms, and chef's kitchens. In 2026, those features still matter -- but they have been quietly displaced at the top of the buyer checklist by something less visible: the property's audio-visual stack. Integrated AV is no longer marketed as a premium add-on alongside climate control or smart lighting. It now sits in the same baseline tier....

Surging investment in artificial intelligence is rapidly reshaping the U.S. office market, driving a new wave of leasing demand from technology firms and helping stabilize some of the nation's hardest-hit urban business districts. Technology companies accounted for nearly 23% of all U.S. office leasing activity in the first quarter of 2026, the highest share among all industries, as aggressive expansion by...

The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) would like to review its anti-flipping rule and reforms to automated valuation models (AVMs), according to Matt Jones, deputy assistant secretary for the FHA’s Office of Single-Family Housing. “We think our AVM, our valuation technology, has improved significantly since that rule was put in place a couple decades ago,” Jones said. “We’d like to take a...

Ginnie Mae President Joseph Gormley, who is also serving as acting commissioner of the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), said the counterparties participating in Ginnie Mae’s program have evolved significantly since the Great Financial Crisis, with greater exposure to independent mortgage banks (IMBs) that have invested heavily in governance and risk management. Still, he cautioned that some...

The forecast for the 2027 cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for Social Security benefits has risen sharply to 3.9%, driven by persistent inflation in housing, utilities and energy, according to new data released by The Senior Citizens League. The projection — up from a steady 2.8% estimate just one month ago — would raise the average monthly benefit for retired workers to roughly $2,162, up from the...

After disappearing for a time after the launch of the initial test last December, real estate listings are back in mobile Google search results in some markets.  Just like the initial test, listings appear under sponsored search results, and they include a full property detail page, links to request a tour, contact an agent and, in some markets, a map of all available listings. The launch markets...

Midwest Real Estate Data (MRED) is threatening to suspend its listing data feeds to Zillow Group websites, including Zillow.com and Trulia.com, unless Zillow cures what the MLS says is a material breach of its license agreements by late Tuesday. In an announcement on Monday, the Illinois-based MLS said it will cut off Zillow’s IDX and VOW data feeds at 11:59 p.m. CDT on Tuesday, May 19, 2026, if...

Lifestyle changes like switching to remote work and growing a family can shift functional needs at home. This Boston-area renovation shows how a home can evolve to accommodate new circumstances. Years ago,...

Cash Buyers Propel Sales Amid Tighter Supply Palm Beach County's housing market posted another month of gains in April, with home sales rising for the eighth straight month as affluent cash purchasers, severely constrained inventory and ongoing migration into South Florida sustained prices despite persistently high mortgage rates. Total residential closings in the county climbed 4.7% from a year earlier...

A yard that’s easy to navigate and maintain, or that checks boxes to make the golden years truly shine, is a true gift to the body, mind and spirit. So designers created these three outdoor retreats with the homeowners’ specific comfort requests in mind, such as an accessible pathway and reachable...