Below is Open House’s first ever installment of a daily round-up of housing news and must-reads. Stop by every day to see what’s happening and why it matters:
Housing at a Glance Nick Timiraos takes a look at the less than refreshing numbers that came out today (namely, 33% dive in home sales).
The Federal Homelessness Plan: Does it Hit the Mark? Change.org summarizes the responses to yesterday’s Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness. National Low Income Housing Coalition, National Alliance to End Homelessness, and the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty are all excited about the plan, but many organizations share the same rallying cry: “Show us the money.” The plan is great at detailing long-term objectives, they say, but short on specifics on where the money will come from. In other words, many believe we advocates still have our work cut out for us.
The Death of Pleasantville, Cont. Wall Street Journal’s Conor Daugherty discusses the rise of cities in recent years – and the corresponding suburban decline – and seems to blame it all on the recession keeping people strapped in place. But it’s not just the economy forcing people from moving to the ‘burbs; they’ve been Leaving Beaver-land for years. We’re talking about a slow but unmistakable, and potentially profound, shift in consumer demand. This isn’t the first time the media has missed the boat on this topic. To a lesser degree, this AP piece from today makes the same assumptions. Stay tuned for more. There’s good reason to keep talking about this…
Talk About Smart Growth Kaid Benfield from NRDC says land use and transportation should be top priorities in the response to the oil spill. Turns out if consumers are aware of their residential energy choices, they’ll be smart about them, according the Affordable Housing Institute. Plus, the National Building Museum, the sight of NHC’s Annual Gala, re-imagines a more eco-friendly “built environment” on the New York Waterfront.
Foreclosure Prevention Are the Federal programs working? The latest FHFA report says yes. Elizabeth Warren seems a little less optimistic on mortgage modifications.
Last But Not Least (OK, maybe least) Some light reading and viewing: “Funny Real Estate Ads.”