A report from NPR. "The final figures for home sales last year are in, and the story is quite grim: 2024 was the slowest year for existing home sales in nearly three decades. At least there's some good news in terms of supply. Last year was a good one for the completion of more housing: An estimated 1.63 million housing units were completed in 2024, according to Census data, or 12.4% above the 2023 figure. As existing home sales have slowed, sales of new homes have become a larger part of the market — about 30%, says Danushka Nanayakkara, assistant vice president for forecasting at the National Association of Homebuilders. There's now significantly more inventory of new homes for sale than there is of existing homes for sale."

From Redfin. "Home purchases fell through at the highest December rate on record, which likely contributed to the decline in pending sales. Nearly 40,000 home-purchase agreements were canceled in December, equal to 16.2% of homes that went under contract that month. That’s the highest December percentage in records dating back to 2017 and is up from 15.1% a year earlier."

KUTV in Utah. "A big goal of 35,000 starter homes in five years was set by Gov. Spencer Cox in his State of the State address. 'It is a very aggressive goal,' said Steve Waldrip, the senior advisor for housing strategy in the governor's staff. “It’s about double what we would naturally produce in a normal market, and right now we are actually in a bit of a down market as far as construction goes.' Waldrip acknowledged we are in a housing crisis, saying lots of people are priced out of the market. 'It’s people making over $100,000 year who can’t afford housing,' he said."

Florida Today. "Florida’s condo market, long a source of affordable housing, now faces a crisis. Many of the state’s 1.1 million condo units over 30 years old are in dire need of repair. These buildings, often constructed during the 1970s and 1980s, were a cornerstone of middle-class housing. Yet, while these structures aged, many associations prioritized short-term savings over long-term planning. For some boards, this was driven by denial. For others, it was about appeasing residents unwilling to pay higher assessments. Whatever the reason, the result is decades of neglect that have left Florida’s condo market teetering on the edge. Some assessments exceed the value of the homes themselves, forcing owners to sell, face foreclosure, or abandon their properties entirely. The hard truth is that many buildings — and, tragically, some residents’ life savings — are beyond saving. No amount of reform or repair funding can change the fact that some properties are simply too far gone."

CBS News Miami in Florida. "Families in Sunrise are on the verge of being put out of their condominiums because their buildings are not safe and they're blaming the homeowners' association. 'There's no transparency,' said resident Claudia Foreo. 'We have no money to pay for this -- $30,000 on each owner on top of our association fees already is impossible.'"

Sarasota Magazine in Florida. "At the end of 2024, the real estate market in Sarasota and Manatee counties showed signs of stabilization after the frenzy of the pandemic years. Sarasota and Manatee counties both saw year-over-year price declines affecting all property types. Sarasota County’s townhouse and condo market faced sharper declines. The median sale price dropped 6.5 percent, to $383,500. Manatee County experienced an 8.9 percent decrease in condo and townhome sales. The median sale price declined 6.8 percent, to $338,990. 'Many seller conversations boil down to this: ‘If I can get the price I want, I’ll move,’ says John Forberger, a local realtor with Douglas Elliman. 'There’s an increasing lack of urgency. When you present the comps to a seller, it’s a reality check—it feels like a cold splash of water. It’s shocking for some people to realize how far we are from the pandemic buying spree.'"

"Forberger also points to the need for sellers to adapt. 'I think sellers may have to adjust expectations even more going into quarter two of 2025,' he says. 'The mindset of a lot of sellers is that the record-breaking buying frenzy [of the pandemic years] is still on, but the open house volume and data show it has ended. We’re constantly faced with that.'"

ABC 7 in California. "Twelve-thousand homes, businesses and more were destroyed by the SoCal wildfires. Entire communities are now in ruins. Most people say they want to rebuild. They might have insurance, but is it going to be enough? 'Over the years, three decades now and counting, two-thirds of wildfire victims find themselves underinsured,' said Amy Bach from United Policyholders. 'You want the amount of insurance on your home, your dwelling to look right, if you paid a million bucks for your house a year ago, and you're insured for $500,000, that's not right. Something there is off, right?'"

Colorado Springs Gazette. "Good news, renters. The cost of renting an apartment in the Denver metro area fell during the last quarter of 2024 and may be the largest price drop for the region 'ever,' according to the Apartment Association of Metro Denver. While the winter season is typically the slowest time of the year, it was the 'softest quarter I’ve seen in the 20 years I’ve been doing this,' said Apartment Insights researcher Cary Bruteig. For apartment owners, however, vacancies climbed as developers delivered some 20,000 units last year. Even though it was a quarterly drop in prices, more often seen in the winter time, the report found it’s the third time in recent Denver history when prices dropped annually. The last two times were after the 9/11 terror attacks coinciding with the dotcom bubble bursting in the early 2000s, and the 2008 housing bubble. 'Winter arrived, because finally we got the big surge in the number of completed units,' Bruteig said. Absorption was about negative 4,800 units in the fourth quarter."

The Globe and Mail. "As a growing number of Canadians retire with mortgages, some are turning to reverse mortgages to tackle that debt. Reverse mortgages are still a niche product, but the business has grown rapidly in the past five years, as seniors who want to remain in their homes struggle amid higher interest rates and soaring living costs. 'We’re seeing a lot more people using [reverse mortgages] for mortgage repayment, but in general just a lot more seniors being interested in reverse mortgages,' said Mahima Poddar, senior vice-president and group head of personal banking at Equitable Bank."

"At HomeEquity Bank, roughly half of all reverse mortgage holders in 2024 used the funds to tackle their debts – a 10-per-cent increase since 2021. At Equitable Bank, that figure is even higher, with 70 per cent of clients using reverse mortgages to consolidate debt. Both institutions said a large portion of that is mortgage debt. Statscan data show that households led by individuals 55 to 64 had $315.7-billion in mortgage liabilities in the first quarter of 2024, up 29 per cent from $244.2-billion in 2020. For those 65 and older, mortgage liabilities grew 45 per cent, from $97.2-billion to $141.2-billion, over the same period."

"On top of that, 1.2 million Canadians are set to renew their mortgages this year, and 85 per cent of those loans were secured when interest rates were at historic lows. While it isn’t clear how many seniors face higher renewals, both Equitable Bank and HomeEquity Bank cited higher renewal rates as a key reason why clients are using reverse mortgages."

The Jerusalem Post. "A new report from Israel's Central Bureau of Statistics reveals a surprising downturn in apartment sales during the final months of 2024. Even after accounting for seasonal adjustments – considering summer as the peak buying season – the decline remained significant at 14.7%, marking a stark contrast to the steady increases seen throughout early 2024. The inventory of unsold new apartments reached approximately 71,040 units by November's end, with an estimated 21.4 -month supply – a notable increase from October's 69,730 units. This inventory has been growing by an average of 1.4% monthly since April 2022."

"The Tel Aviv District holds the largest share of unsold inventory at 32.2% (22,880 units), followed by the Central District with 24.4% (17,290 units). Among major cities with populations exceeding 100,000, Tel Aviv-Yafo leads with about 8,470 unsold units, while Jerusalem follows with approximately 6,220 units."

Business Mirror in the Philippines. "Aside from the mismatch in the demand and supply issue highlighted by the more than 60,000 unsold inventory, property developers have to hurdle the pricing issue of condominiums, an official of a major property management company said. 'It’s a very simple solution, there’s a mismatch in the demand and supply but it’s really due to pricing which is at least 20-40 percent overvalued. Those units could be sold off in a year if priced 'to market,' KMC Chairman Michael McCullough told the BusinessMirror."

"He also pointed out that developers continue to build unaffordable vertical housing because their job is simply to maximize returns. Although building condominiums benefits some sectors like the construction industry, McCullough stressed building condominiums is not rosy as before because it no longer offers affordability, convenience, capital appreciation, or value. 'That’s why demand has moved to the suburbs, open space, community, and fresh air,' he said."

"Meanwhile, McCullough said the office market in Metro Manila remains resilient despite high vacancy rates and declining rents. He said the information technology-business process management (IT-BPM) sector continues to support the demand, contributing to a positive net take-up of office space. 'However, with an additional 500,000 sq. m. of office space expected to enter the market by the end of 2025, vacancy rates are projected to remain above 20 percent,' he said."