The Real Economy Blog

Real Estate

Real estate and the middle market go hand in hand. Developers in commercial, residential and industrial markets provide the economic fuel to transform local economies, building infrastructure that leads to new business and job creation.

Chart of the day: U.S. housing starts and permits slowed amid shortages

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Housing starts and permits stayed below expectations in September, signaling a supply slowdown because of shortages of materials and labor. The headline figure for housing starts fell by 1.6% on the month to 1.555 million units annualized because of a drop in multifamily units while single-family starts—the more important series—remained unchanged, ... READ MORE >

Housing starts in Canada fall for the fourth consecutive month

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Housing starts in Canada fell 4.42% to 251,151 in September, another sign of the continuing shortages of raw materials and labor that have gripped the economy. The drop, the fourth monthly decline in a row, was led by dramatic decreases in Ontario (9,380 units), Alberta (4,730 units) and most notably British Columbia (11,164 units), according to data ... READ MORE >

Lessons from the American Dream mega-mall

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What happens when a real estate investor does not look at changing consumer preferences when undertaking a new project? More often than not, it ends in disappointment, and lost money. One project that is heading down this path is New Jersey’s American Dream mega-mall. The unfinished property, which has cost investors about $2 billion so far, is ... READ MORE >

Americans spent more on building homes than on building anything else for the first time in 14 years

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In another sign of the housing market’s continued strength, U.S. spending on residential buildings—both private and public—increased by 0.4% in August to $795.5 billion, while nonresidential spending declined by 0.4% to $788.6 billion, on a seasonally adjusted annual rate. The data points directly to a housing market that remains robust as home prices ... READ MORE >

Building permits in Canada continued to fall with material shortages

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The value of building permits in Canada decreased by 2.1% in August from July to a seasonally adjusted 9.66 billion Canadian dollars as developers continued to feel the effect of supply and labour shortages. August’s decline, which fell short of forecasts, continued the downward trend from the peak in March and came even as buyers, seeking more room to ... READ MORE >

Flood insurance premiums to increase for coastal property owners

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After years of mounting losses from hurricanes and rising water levels, the federal flood insurance program will begin phasing out subsides starting on Oct. 1. The long-sought changes to the National Flood Insurance Program are designed to shift the cost of owning properties in flood-prone areas onto homeowners and are part of an effort to encourage ... READ MORE >

Chart of the day: Sales of existing homes drop amid high prices

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Existing home sales in August inched down by 2.0% to 5.88 million, following an upwardly revised 6.00 million in July, according to a report released Wednesday by the National Association of Realtors. The new data continued to point to signs of deceleration in the housing market, but it is still a hot market driven by strong demand. The unsold home ... READ MORE >