A report from CBS Colorado."Shannon Lofland, a 21 year veteran of the Arapahoe County Sheriff's Office, resigned this week in the midst of a department internal investigation into her performing in adult videos, jobs she says she took 'out of desperation.' She said a massive storm in June of 2023 caused an estimated half a million dollars in hail and water damage to her home that her insurance company would not cover. Additionally, she said rising interest rates contributed to her adjustable rate mortgage tripling in cost over the last three years. Foreclosure proceedings were started on her house. Increases in everyday expenses like utility bills, gas and food costs made things worse. She said she borrowed money from her family, cut spending and tried everything, but needed a fast influx of cash to keep the debt collectors and foreclosure at bay."

"In a short period of time, she said she made enough money to make her monthly mortgage payment. 'My actions have been made out of desperation. 'Some may judge and say there are 'better' ways to make money, but at the time I had no other lucrative means for doing so,' said Lofland. 'I loved being in law enforcement,' said Lofland, who said she is now pondering her future. Will she continue making adult videos? She has not ruled it out, but has not made a final decision. 'There are many deputies and officers doing what they can to make extra money, with or without permission,' said Lofland. 'People are doing what they can to survive at this time.'"

Idaho Statesman. "A large retail development with apartments was supposed to revitalize two city blocks in downtown Meridian. Instead, it faces foreclosure. After failing to pay contractors for months of work, the project’s developer, Boise’s Galena Opportunity Fund, and its subsidiaries have been embroiled in legal disputes for the past two years. One of Galena’s investors had pulled out in 2022, Galena attorney Jim Donoval told the Statesman in February. At the time, Donoval said Galena was 'avidly' working to secure alternative funding to be able to finish the project and pay its workers. Then, contractors began filing liens and lawsuits seeking compensation for the estimated $17.3 million of work they had already done. Meanwhile, the unfinished project has been an blight in downtown Meridian. Contractors say they still have yet to be paid. 'Galena is not paying any of the plaintiffs,' Okland Construction attorney Tim Conde told the Idaho Statesman by phone."

NPR on Nevada. "Leaving Las Vegas, where the sprawl once gave way to scrub land and Joshua trees, the desert in many places is being transformed. New industrial scale solar farms go for miles, their neat rows of millions of panels glaring in the sun. And there are a lot more planned, such as the 'Esmeralda Seven,' projects near the southwest corner of the state bordering California that would provide enough power for an estimated three million homes. 'It's being pushed down our throats,' says Mary Jane Zakas, who lives near the 100 square mile stretch of high desert where the seven are proposed."

"Esmeralda County, population 736, is one of the most remote and poorest parts of the country. Zakas sees little benefit from the solar boom other than a few construction jobs. The power, she says, will just get exported to cities at the expense of local viewsheds and wildlife. 'Imagine, looking out your window any way and only seeing solar,' Zakas says. 'It's the Biden administration at the moment that has told the state of Nevada we have to comply.'"

From WLRN. "Senators from both parties and experts from various fields gathered to tackle the Florida condo crisis — but warned struggling owners that there is no silver bullet for rising costs and that deadlines are not likely to be extended. In fact, Senate Democratic leader Jason Pizzo underlined that owners, including those of the collapsed Surfside building, should not be surprised by the state of affairs. They could even shoulder some of the blame for not having tackled issues until it was too late, he told WLRN. 'We went 30 years without doing anything, and all of a sudden we're shocked and surprised that we're gonna have an expensive sort of wake-up call of tough-love measure?' he said at the event in Broward."

Silicon Valley. "With its rows of tidy two-story, tile-roofed, stucco-clad homes and neatly trimmed shrubs, Carolina Villaseca's Brentwood neighborhood hardly looks like a tinderbox one spark away from erupting in flames and joining the list of wildfire-torched California communities that has spooked insurers statewide and led to sharp rate hikes and lost coverage. Yet in October, Villaseca's insurer, Safeco Insurance, sent a notice that the annual premium to renew her policy, which already had climbed steeply, would more than double, from $2,700 to $5,770."

"'No claims, and the insurance company didn't have an explanation whatsoever,' said Villaseca, who's lived in the home with her husband for nine years. 'The price has gone up every year, and I would say in the last three years, the price has gone up exponentially. They make it so people can't afford to renew their insurance.' Another insurer, Mercury, offered a policy for $3,100, and as shocking as the price was, at least Villaseca found coverage. Her Contra Costa County ZIP code, 94513, had the largest number of home insurance policy non-renewals in the nine-county Bay Area from 2015 to 2024, with about one in every 10 policies, according to a Bay Area News Group analysis."

The Los Angeles Times. "As President-elect Donald Trump vows to impose tariffs on imports from China, Mexico and Canada, economists are warning that a retaliatory trade war could cause major financial damage for California’s agriculture industry. This year, almond prices have begun to increase again. 'The market's rebounding. It's coming back. Growers are still hurting,' said Jake Wenger, general manager of the Salida Hulling Assn., which runs an almond-hulling plant in Modesto. 'This year, people should at least be able to pay their bills, but I do know of growers that have had to sell off some of their land to pay bills, to pay debts, just to stay in business.'"

"Wenger said there are about 110 growers in his co-op, but he hasn’t heard anyone voicing concerns about tariffs. 'I don't think anybody's that worried,' he said. 'There are going to be some changes, yep, but we'll see what happens, what changes do come, and we'll roll with the punches, like farmers always do.'"

From Agrinews. "For the first time since the end of 2019, farmland values in the 7th Federal Reserve District did not see a year-over-year increase. 'It’s been quite a run-up in farmland values in the past five years, and now it has petered out, it seems like,' said David Oppedahl, a Chicago Fed policy adviser, lead ag analyst and AgLetter co-author. Wisconsin had another year-over-year gain in farmland values, but only of 4%. Illinois, Indiana and Iowa had year-over-year decreases in farmland values of 1%, 2% and 1%, respectively. An Illinois banker noted that 'low grain prices are definitely affecting borrowers’ ability to pay off operating loans.' Another respondent from Illinois remarked that 'lower net farm income and cash-flow difficulties will affect land values.'"

"'Unsurprisingly, given income expectations, forced sales or liquidations of farm assets owned by financially distressed farmers were anticipated to rise in the next three to six months relative to a year ago, as 38% of the responding bankers anticipated them to increase and 2% anticipated them to decrease,' Oppedahl said."

The Daily Hive in Canada. "A condo for sale in Vancouver’s Coal Harbour neighbourhood leans on its ocean and mountain views to appeal to potential buyers — as well as its owner, who apparently never even lived in the unit. Apartment 3001 in The Lions at 1331 Alberni Street was listed for sale this week for $1.5 million. To market itself, it leans into the somewhat taboo topic of foreign ownership. 'Overseas owner, never lived in. Like brand new unit,' the unit’s description reads. Realtor Jeff Appelbe told Daily Hive remarks about an overseas owner in a sale aren’t uncommon in Vancouver — though those comments usually stay between agents and don’t make it to public listings.'This sums up the problem [with] Vancouver real estate, right?' Appelbe said. 'It’s one of a handful of reasons why we are among the least affordable cities on the planet. Money laundering, weak rules, weak enforcement, and bad government policy are other contributing factors.'"

"This owner appears to have owned the condo since 2009 or 2010 — the last time sale activity was recorded for the unit. High mortgage rates are encouraging investor landlords to dump their units, especially for those with multi-year tenants whose rent revenues are no longer covering their increased mortgage payments, Appelbe said. As China’s economy slows down, he’s also seeing owners based there try to cash out of their Vancouver properties."

GB News in the UK. "Families in a new Northumberland housing estate are living through a devastating ordeal after their £130,000 homes were flooded twice in just six months, leaving many facing financial ruin. The development, built on a former colliery site, has left homeowners in a desperate situation as many are now unable to secure insurance coverage following the repeated flooding incidents. Most devastating of all, it has emerged that the site was known to be at risk of surface flooding when planning permission was granted, raising serious questions about the approval process."

"Nick Tait, 24, and his fiancée Dionne Humes, 23, exemplify the nightmare facing Crawford Park residents after purchasing their £128,000 two-bedroom semi last September. 'I guarantee the value of our property has easily halved,' Tait added. 'We are terrified every single time it rains.' The planning failure is further illustrated by the case of Kayley Walker, whose car was written off in the October floods. 'It's ridiculous. Nothing was said about a flood risk when we bought the house,' said Ms Walker. 'I blame both Gleesons and Northumbria Water. They shouldn't have built here without proper drainage.'"

Radio New Zealand. "A penthouse apartment in Auckland's Ōrākei, a house next door to a golf course in Mount Maunganui and a Lower Hutt townhouse are just some of the properties being advertised for sale for significantly less than they were bought for in recent years. The Ōrākei apartment was bought for $6 million in February 2020 and is now listed for enquiries over $5m. The four-bedroom Lower Hutt house was bought for $1.87m in November 2021 and is listed for enquiries over $1.35m. The Mount Maunganui home was bought for $3.29m in November 2021 and has an asking price of $2.85m. The salesperson for the latter property said it was surplus to requirements and the vendors did not live in it. 'They are selling because they have some commercial interests to pursue.'"

ABC News in Australia. "Federal Financial Services Minister Stephen Jones says state consumer ministers will meet this week to discuss ways to stamp out poor behaviour by retirement village operators. Retired actuary, academic and retirement village expert Tim Kyng, who has assessed hundreds of retirement village contracts, described them as 'cunningly designed rip-offs.' The ABC has been flooded with hundreds of emails and messages from retirement village residents and their families. Many of them paint a picture of being financially trapped due to huge exit fees, refurbishment costs and restrictive contracts that include mandatory health checks."

"Maurine Moore left her retirement village this year with $343,000 after various fees including exit fees were deducted. The 90-year-old paid $490,000 for it almost 15 years ago. Homes in the suburb rose more than 150 per cent over the same period, according to CoreLogic data. The operator put her house on the market for $1.1 million. 'I would have been happy just to get back what I actually paid for it, but they didn't even pay that,' she told the ABC."

South China Morning Post. "Echo Huang Shaomei, the newly appointed CEO of heavily indebted New World Development (NWD), is facing a host of formidable challenges in the coming months; key among them, how the real estate giant can sell its costly projects without incurring significant losses. Analysts predict that two of NWD's major upcoming developments in North Point and Wong Chuk Hang will be loss-making, judging from their high land costs and the depressed pricing of recent projects. NWD is expected to price its project with reference to 101 King's Road, a new residential tower nearby developed by Wang On Properties, said Joseph Tsang, chairman of JLL Hong Kong. 'Optimistically, the [NWD] project will be breaking even,' Tsang said."

"Things look even worse for a coming residential project led by NWD in Wong Chuk Hang, which Tsang expected to be sold at a loss. The 'package five' project of the Southside residential neighbourhood - which is co-developed by Empire Group, CSI Properties and Lai Sun Development - was approved in October for a presale, providing 825 units, according to the Lands Department. 'The price per square foot for primary launches in the area is about HK$22,000, but I expect its construction cost to be around HK$30,000 or even higher,' Tsang said. The scene looks as bleak across the harbour in Kai Tak, home to NWD's 1,305-unit joint-venture project. Co-developer Far East Consortium reported a HK$217 million loss for the Pavilia Forest development in the six months ended September 30."