Robyn A. Friedman

Florida, Fort Lauderdale

Business Journalist and Columnist at Freelance

Business journalist, specializing in real estate and personal finance. Wall Street Journal columnist. Dog lover. Yogi. Please follow me on Bluesky.

Articles

What You Should Know About Assisted Living

1 week ago | kiplinger.com | Robyn A. Friedman

When Charlie Gould realized it might be time to explore alternative housing options for his 81-year-old mother and her husband, the couple had already tried in-home assistance at their condominium in Boca Raton, Fla. But some falls and other incidents had concerned Gould, and he wanted to be proactive, providing additional support for his folks before the need became critical.
How Much of Your Income Should Go to Rent?

2 weeks ago | realestate.usnews.com | Robyn A. Friedman |Dawn Bradbury |Liisa Rajala

Key Takeaways: For most Americans, the largest expense in their monthly budget is housing, whether rent or a mortgage payment. A general rule of thumb is “the 30% rule,” which states that renters should not spend more than 30% of their gross monthly income on rent. To avoid crimping your budget, consider finding a roommate, living in a less expensive area, negotiating with your landlord, downsizing or asking family for financial help.
Should You Buy a New Home Before Selling Your Old One?

1 month ago | realestate.usnews.com | Robyn A. Friedman |Dawn Bradbury |Liisa Rajala

Key Takeaways: Competitive markets sometimes require fast action from buyers and sellers. Buying first allows you to sell your home vacant without having to worry about maintaining it in show-ready condition. Purchasing a new home first comes with risk. You might end up carrying the costs of two homes until your old home sells. If you’re in the market for a new home, but, like most homeowners, you need to sell your old one, what’s the best way to handle the logistics?
The Best Messages to Send When Reaching Out to a Real Estate Agent for the First Time

1 month ago | realestate.usnews.com | Robyn A. Friedman |Dawn Bradbury |Liisa Rajala

Key Takeaways Real estate agents like to be contacted different ways, but a text or email is a good start. Busy agents are bombarded with phone calls, email messages and texts. Demonstrate that you are serious about working with them. Don’t give the agent the impression that you are a casual buyer – someone merely interested in spending the afternoon looking at houses. Are you planning to buy or sell a home?
Stuck in your home? Low-cost home improvements can make it feel new again.

1 month ago | boston.com | Robyn A. Friedman

Spring House Hunt Do you feel stuck in your home? Perhaps you purchased what you thought was a starter home, but when you tried to buy a bigger place, you discovered you were priced out of the market.
Should You Work with a Real Estate Agent Who’s a Friend?

1 month ago | realestate.usnews.com | Robyn A. Friedman |Liisa Rajala |Dawn Bradbury

Key Takeaways There are pros and cons to hiring a friend as your real estate agent. With a friend, there’s already trust, plus the agent is familiar with how you live and your needs and wants. But working with a friend can risk the relationship, so if there’s any doubt or hesitancy, hire someone else. It’s essential to vet any agent you consider working with, friend or not. Libby Von Bargen and Cari McGee have been friends since 2008.
Stuck in your home? Low-cost home improvements can make it feel new again. - The Boston Globe

1 month ago | bostonglobe.com | Robyn A. Friedman

Do you feel stuck in your home? Perhaps you purchased what you thought was a starter home, but when you tried to buy a bigger place, you discovered you were priced out of the market. Considering that the median sales price of a single-family home in Greater Boston was $883,000 in February 2025 — up almost 13 percent year-over-year, according to the Greater Boston Association of Realtors — many wannabe move-up buyers are finding themselves stuck at home.
Why you might need flood insurance even if your house isn't in a flood zone

2 months ago | boston.com | Robyn A. Friedman |Kaitlyn Johnston

Do you have flood insurance? If your home is located in a high-flood-risk area and you have a federally backed mortgage, you probably do because your lender would have required it. But what if you paid cash for your home? Or it’s not located in a high-flood-risk area? You might still need flood insurance to protect what, for many, is their largest asset — your home.
GEO: What Apartment Marketers Need to Know

2 months ago | multihousingnews.com | Robyn A. Friedman

Image by da-kuk/iStockphoto.comYour digital marketing staff is no doubt doing a bang-up job of optimizing your apartment websites, driving qualified leads that can then be converted into leases. But are those marketing strategies future-proof? In the world of digital marketing—which is evolving so quickly that even experts have a hard time keeping up—will your strategies continue to deliver in the future, when artificial intelligence becomes an integral part of your online search strategy?
What to Expect in the Rest of This Year's Housing Market

2 months ago | kiplinger.com | Robyn A. Friedman

In some ways, now is a challenging time to take the plunge and buy your dream home. Many homeowners who locked in ultra-low mortgage rates a few years ago continue to stay put — limiting the supply of homes for sale — and it remains to be seen how the new presidential administration’s policy decisions will affect the housing market. But the general consensus among some of the country’s most respected housing economists is this: If you need to buy, then buy.