Sinking home sales, lower home prices — we’re all feeling the effects of the housing decline. And many of us are paying for it, thanks to higher loan resets. But reports indicate that the decline will soon hit homeowners in a new, costly way: Via property taxes. It seems wrong that property taxes could possibly be rising, when home values and selling prices are dropping across the nation. (Housing prices in the top 20 U.S. cities fell 3.9 percent in July from 2006, according to a recently-released Case-Shiller index.) However, because many counties assess properties every other year (some take…

… at least, not according to today’s report on the economy. Data released by the Labor Department today showed that wages and jobs were both up in September. That’s good news for the U.S., considering the recent dour housing news — the National Association of Realtors announced this week that its index of signed purchase agreements fell to lowest level on record, and residential building hit its lowest spending level since 2003 — had sparked fears we were tumbling into a recession. And, as it turns out, last month wasn’t as bad as we thought. In August, figures indicated the…

As the mortgage default and, accordingly, the foreclosure rate rises, one party has emerged to take the fall — the at-risk homeowner. Some are homeowners who used their home’s value to fund other purchases. Others are new homeowners who bought using a loan that, given booming home prices, assumed their property would appreciate significantly before being refinanced or sold. Many are people who took out a subprime mortgages, loans typically made to people with weak credit histories that will rise in a few years. And rise they did. More than $350 billion adjustable rate mortgages will reset to higher rates…

Yesterday, we touched on the current housing market woes as the National Association of Realtors proclaimed that its index of signed purchase agreements dropped to the lowest level on record. And today, we’re looking for a side of hope to go with that gloom and doom. No one’s arguing that the market is bad — and probably about to get worse — but good news: Some people and programs are trying to turn it around. Help with lending. Homeowners finding their bank isn’t giving them a decent rate due to the bank’s problems or imperfect credit might benefit from trying…

More dour housing market news — The National Association of Realtors announced today that its index of signed purchase agreements fell 6.5 percent to its lowest level on record. (Now, granted, the NAR has only kept a record since 2001, but it’s hard to feel much better when you still consider that means the least amount of people in the U.S. in six years decided to buy previously-owned homes in August.) Given that the index of signed purchase agreements fell 11 percent in July, it’s not exactly a total shock — but we’ve read too many "lowest point" and "new…

In just over a month, the U.S. Green Building Council will roll out its LEED for Homes standards. Since August 2005, 6,000 home projects have been part of the LEED pilot program, ranging from large — like the 44-home development in Walker, Mich., to small — such as the 1960s-era home in Phoenix being remodeled with environmentally-friendly paint, carpet and other materials. (A complete list of certified projects can be found on the LEED site.) We’ve been talking about this for ages. But what does LEED for Homes mean for the industry? What to Expect from LEED for Homes The…

As office hours get longer — thanks to the longer work week and always being available via cell phone, e-mail and other things that ring and beep — personal time is getting shorter. It’s hard to find a balance between both. Your local developer may be able to help. Mixed-use developments featuring stores and restaurants have, in the past, addressed our lack of free time, providing "one-stop shopping" (sometimes literally). And now, mixed-use communities are evolving to tackle the tenacious balance between work and what happens when work ends for the day. Two interesting examples: The "Busidence." Although it was…

New Orleans has been struggling to rebuild since Hurricane Katrina devastated the city in 2005, but more help is on the way — from Hollywood. Brad Pitt, speaking Wednesday at the Clinton Global Initiative, announced plans for a new community of homes in New Orleans’ Lower 9th Ward, the area hardest hit by Katrina. The plan is to: Form a core team of local, national and international architects to construct 150 sustainable homes. Involve the Lower 9th Ward in the rebuilding. Create an affordable, green-designed, sustainable community to serve as a model for future rebuilding efforts. The new homes are…

When making an argument for green building, one of the first things green proponents will bring up is the over-time savings — which can balance out the initial extra sustainable building costs. However, the green building focus thus far has largely been on commercial green building. That’s partially because of the scope of commercial construction — larger building projects use more materials and create more waste, so building green buildings will make a greater impact on the environment than building smaller home structures would. But that’s not to say the residential market has totally ignored the green trend. It’s become…