Housing News
HUD puts $113 million toward revitalizing six urban areas
HUD awards $113.6 million
The U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced today that six public housing authorities will be awarded $113.6 million to revitalized “distressed public housing developments in their cities into mixed-income communities.”
Several cities submitted revitalization plans to HUD for the HOPE VI Program, with the six winning cities focused on innovative revitalization plans, including early childhood education programs which the Obama Administration has made clear is one of their objectives. The program has awarded over $6.1 billion in grants since its inception in 1993.
This HUD program has done “an outstanding job over the years to improve housing conditions for countless low-income communities and this year, we took it a step further,” HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan said today. “As we start to broaden the scope of our efforts through the Choice Neighborhoods pilot program – linking housing to schools and early education programs, public transportation, grocery stores, health clinics and community centers – this year, HUD encouraged housing authorities for the first time to incorporate early childhood education components in their revitalization plans.”
Six cities awarded grants:
- Housing Authority of the City of Charlotte (NC) will receive $20,900,000 to revitalize the Boulevard Homes public housing development.
- Housing Authority of Covington (KY) will receive $17,000,000 to revitalize the Jacob Price public housing development.
- Housing Authority of the City of Dallas (TX) will receive $22,000,000 to revitalize the Turner Courts public housing development.
- Housing Authority of the City of Jersey City (NJ) will receive $9,700,000 to revitalize the A. Harry Moore public housing development.
- Memphis (TN) Housing Authority will receive $22,000,000 to revitalize the Cleaborn Homes public housing development.
- Housing Authority of the City of Trenton (NJ) will receive $22,000,000 to revitalize the Miller Homes public housing development.
According to HUD, “HOPE VI Revitalization grant funds are used for an array of activities, including: demolition of severely distressed public housing; acquisition of sites for off-site construction; capital costs of major rehabilitation; new construction and other physical improvements; costs for mobility counseling and relocation; and community and supportive service programs for residents, including those relocated as a result of revitalization efforts.”
CC Licensed image courtesy of orinrobertjohn via Flickr.com.
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Average age of houses on the rise, so is it now better or worse to buy new?
With aging housing in America, are first-time buyers better off buying new or existing homes? The average age of a home is rising, as is the price of new housing, so a shift could be upon us.
The average home age is higher than ever
(REALUOSO.COM) – In a survey from the Department of Housing and Urban Development American Housing Survey (AHS), the median age of homes in the United States was 35 years old. In Texas, homes are a bit younger with the median age between 19 – 29 years. The northeast has the oldest homes, with the median age between 50 – 61 years. In 1985, the median age of a home was only 23 years.
With more houses around 40 years old, the National Association of Realtors asserts that homeowners will have to undertake remodeling and renovation projects before selling unless the home is sold as-is, in which case the buyer will be responsible to update their new residence. Even homeowners who aren’t selling will need to consider remodeling for structural and aesthetic reasons.
Prices of new homes on the rise
Newer homes cost more than they used to. The price differential between new homes and older homes has increased from 10 percent traditionally to around 37 percent in 2014. This is due to rising construction costs, scarcity of lots, and a low inventory of new homes that doesn’t meet the demand.
Click here to continue reading this story…
Housing News
Are Realtors the real loser in the fight between Zillow Group and Move, Inc.?
The last year has been one of dramatic and rapid change in the real estate tech sector, but Realtors are vulnerable, and we’re worried.
Why Realtors are vulnerable to these rapid changes
(REALUOSO.COM) – Corporate warfare demands headlines in every industry, but in the real estate tech sector, a storm has been brewing for years, which in the last year has come to a head. Zillow Group and Move, Inc. (which is owned by News Corp. and operates ListHub, Realtor.com, TopProducer, and other brands) have been competing for a decade now, and the race has appeared to be an aggressive yet polite boxing match. Last year, the gloves came off, and now, they’ve drawn swords and appear to want blood.
Note: We’ll let you decide which company plays which role in the image above.
So how then, does any of this make Realtors the victims of this sword fight? Let’s get everyone up to speed, and then we’ll discuss.
1. Zillow poaches top talent, Move/NAR sues
It all started last year when the gloves came off – Move’s Chief Strategy Officer (who was also Realtor.com’s President), Errol Samuelson jumped ship and joined Zillow on the same day he phoned in his resignation without notice. He left under questionable circumstances, which has led to a lengthy legal battle (wherein Move and NAR have sued Zillow and Samuelson over allegations of breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, and misappropriation of trade secrets), with the most recent motion being for contempt, which a judge granted to Move/NAR after the mysterious “Samuelson Memo” surfaced.
Salt was added to the wound when Move awarded Samuelson’s job to Move veteran, Curt Beardsley, who days after Samuelson left, also defected to Zillow. This too led to a lawsuit, with allegations including breach of contract, violation of corporations code, illegal dumping of stocks, and Move has sought restitution. These charges are extremely serious, but demanded slightly less attention than the ongoing lawsuit against Samuelson.
2. Two major media brands emerge
Last fall, the News Corp. acquisition of Move, Inc. was given the green light by the feds, and this month, Zillow finalized their acquisition of Trulia.
…Click here to continue reading this story…
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Joe
June 3, 2010 at 1:46 pm
Sadly, Dallas Texas does not need the money. The good folks in Texas are doing so well they can afford their own revitalizing. I wonder if the money could have been better spent in a more needy community like Detroit.
Jimbo
June 3, 2010 at 8:18 pm
that’s a shame that they didn’t consider downtown Charleston, SC….i suppose many don’t consider it “urban” because the tallest building is a church
Marc Knight
June 4, 2010 at 5:50 am
It’s good if they help some areas; certainly an improvement.