Ronda Kaysen

2 weeks ago | seattletimes.com | Ronda Kaysen

As 2025 began, the stars were aligning for a housing market rebound. Inflation was easing, the economy looked strong, and mortgage rates were drifting downward. By April, there were more available homes to buy than at any time since January 2020, according to the Federal Reserve of St. Louis. The conditions were ripe for buyers to reemerge, checkbooks in hands, and sellers to negotiate.

2 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Ronda Kaysen

Economists predicted that the United States would break free of its long-running housing slump in 2025. But the opposite happened. Even in Austin, Texas, where there are plenty of homes to buy, the market is "frozen," said one local real estate agent. Credit... Montinique Monroe for The New York Times As 2025 began, the stars were aligning for a housing market rebound. Inflation was easing, the economy looked strong and mortgage rates were drifting downward.

1 month ago | sacbee.com | Ronda Kaysen |Robert Gebeloff |Leanne Abraham

In the aftermath of the Los Angeles fires that destroyed thousands of homes and properties, many fire victims moved far away from Altadena and Pacific Palisades in a sudden diaspora that upended the two tight-knit communities in ways beyond the initial loss of property. Residents now living in rentals, with expenses that have ballooned, expressed frustration with school transfers, longer commutes to work and the overnight disappearance of yearslong relationships with their neighbors.

2 months ago | nytimes.com | Ronda Kaysen

Walk into Pearl River Mart in Soho and the store is a sensory marvel of imported goods that could fill a home - colorful cups and bowls, teapots, paper lanterns, vases and ceramic figurines. There's the paper lantern a shopper might impulsively buy on a Sunday afternoon, or the wok and spatula waiting to stock a new apartment. About 65 percent of the merchandise comes from China.

2 months ago | nytimes.com | Ronda Kaysen

Take a line-by-line look at the estimated costs of building this four-bedroom home in Phoenix, Ariz., under President Trump’s agenda.