You Don’t Have To Walk Very Far These Days To See A For Sale Sign

A report from the Washington Post. “Until recently, Prince George’s ranked as the wealthiest majority-Black county in the United States, fueled by middle-class workers who gravitated to the federal sector for its promise of stability and benefits. The federal government is the largest employer in Maryland, and more than 65,000 federal workers live in Prince George’s County, making up 17.4 percent of the county’s total workforce. Alvin Thornton, a former Prince George’s County school board member, said the Black middle class is relatively new and generally spans two generations: ‘grandfathers, grandmothers and their children’ who were the first in their families to build equity. This instability, he said, means they may now have to tap into savings or even consider selling their homes to get by.”

“Jonathan Hairston, an artificial intelligence specialist for the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, received the email he was dreading on Valentine’s Day. Like so many other federal workers in Prince George’s County, his once-stable family life was upended. He spent hours on the phone with creditors and mortgage lenders. On March 17, Hairston learned he and thousands of other probationary employees had been reinstated temporarily thanks to an order from a federal judge. Meanwhile, Hairston is still locked out of his phone. ‘It’s unnerving,’ Hairston said. ‘We grew up understanding the security that comes with the federal government. Now, that’s up in flux.'”

The Globe and Mail. “Mark Hintz began flying the Canadian flag outside of his Florida home in January, after U.S. president-elect Donald Trump ratcheted up his talk about annexing Canada. The flag must have offended someone in Mr. Hintz’s gated community, because he received an unpleasant letter from his homeowners’ association telling him to take it down in three days or face fines of US$25 a day. Mr. Hintz, a 56-year-old dual citizen who has lived in the United States with his 78-year-old mother for the past 12 years, was incensed. It affirmed that leaving his prim neighbourhood near Sarasota, Fla., and heading back to the Toronto area was the right move. Mr. Hintz says his home, which he lives in with his mother, has lost roughly US$100,000 in value in the past couple of years, and they only expect to break even when it sells. It has already been on the market for more than two months. ‘Sarasota is a real hotbed for the MAGA movement and it’s pretty disconcerting when you see the guys in pickup trucks with big Trump flags,’ he said.”

“In the past two months, some Florida realtors say they’ve been inundated with Canadian sellers who are hoping to offload their properties as quickly as possible. The timing is hardly ideal: Previously competitive real estate markets such as Clearwater, Naples and Sarasota are all facing a glut of properties after the region was hit hard by Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton last autumn, which led to an unaffordable spike in insurance and condo fees. Alexandra DuPont, broker at DuPont International Realty in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and a dual citizen who specializes in working with Canadians, said she may have worked with 10 Canadian sellers in a busy year before. She’s currently working with about 35. ‘I’ve never had a season like this,’ said Ms. DuPont. Ms. DuPont says conversations among her clients have changed from revolving around the dollar to political views in the past few weeks. ‘They’re very expressive of their political views. I’ve had clients tell me they feel like they’re being hypocrites if they were to come back to Florida and there’s some sense of shame or guilt about returning,’ she said.”

The Los Angeles Times in California. “The Coachella Valley has long been a favorite destination for Canadian snowbirds, who pump millions of dollars into the local economy every year. Now, its desert towns are bracing for a major financial blow as northerners — citing Trump’s aggression toward Canada — cancel flights, ditch hotel and Airbnb reservations and put their second homes up for sale. Kenny Cassady, director of business development for Acme House Co., which manages vacation rental properties in Palm Springs, said Canadians often book stays of one to three months a full year in advance, returning to the same properties annually. ‘But when it comes to rebooking for next year? They’re just declining,’ said Cassady. ‘It’s going to be most noticeable come next season. It could have a ripple effect beyond guests not booking to come back and spending rental dollars.'”

“Paul Kaplan, a Palm Springs real estate agent, said that, as of February, he and his team started getting calls from snowbirds looking to sell their second homes. He has at least five listings from Canadians and expects more in the coming weeks as the so-called high season for tourists comes to a close. ‘They’re saying, ‘We just don’t feel welcome any more,’ Kaplan said. He added that ‘financially, it makes sense’ for Canadians to sell their American property now, because the Canadian dollar is weak compared with its American counterpart. According to the Bank of Canada, the current exchange rate is roughly 1.40 Canadian dollars per U.S. dollar.”

Times of San Diego. “California tourism could lose billions of dollars because of President Donald Trump’s policies on tariffs, immigration and gender identity, as well as his talk of annexing Canada. Nancy, who asked that her last name not be published because she fears the Trump administration will target dual citizens like her, is a ‘snowbird.’ She and tens of thousands of Canadians, many of them retired, stay in California and other warm U.S. states during the winter months. Nancy is American-born but has mostly lived in Canada since the early 1970s. She and her husband are selling their condo in Rancho Mirage, a decision they made because of what she calls the headache involved in owning property in two countries, even before all this ‘bullying and nonsense.’ Now she has heard others like her talk about selling their properties in California, too.”

“Anna Kelly, a White House spokesperson, doubled down on Trump’s annexation remarks in an email response to CalMatters’ questions about the decline in international travel, especially from Canada: ‘The United States is a great destination for international travelers, and Canadians will be unburdened by the inconveniences of international travel when they become American citizens as residents of our cherished 51st state.'”

Memphis Commercial Appeal in Tennessee. “While some activity is underway at The Lake District, work remains halted on the townhomes portion of the project. Notable local commercial real estate firm Cushman & Wakefield continues its effort to attract tenants for unfilled spaces at the mixed-use development in Lakeland. However, behind the retail district is the unfinished townhomes portion of the project. The Lake District was touted by former developer Yeuda Netanel to become one of the largest retail and residential projects in the Memphis area. But with Netanel mired in financial troubles, lender TIG Romspen US Master Mortgage LP acquired part of the development for roughly $26 million after it received no bidders during a May foreclosure sale. The residential portion of The Lake District, called The Willows at The Lake District, is owned by Washington-based major private construction lender Builders Capital, which took back that property from Netanel in January 2024.”

“‘Both owners that have properties in The Lake District, which is Builders Capital for the townhomes and Romspen for the remainder of the project, are actively looking for buyers for some or all of their holdings,’ said Lakeland City Manager Michael Walker. ‘In the case of Builders Capital, they seek to sell all of their holdings.'”

From Bisnow. “Two years after the failures of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank touched off waves of panic over the concentration of commercial real estate loans held by regional banks, financial institutions are making a dent in their balance of bad debt. Concerns about regional banks’ ability to absorb declining real estate values became pervasive despite a pullback from CRE lending in the wake of the banks’ failures. ‘We’re going through somewhat of a purgatory process right now for those loans that were originated at the height of market exuberance — call it the zero-interest-rate phenomenon,’ said Tom Taylor, senior manager of research at Trepp. Conversations about loan extensions also start with questions about how much new capital the owner is bringing in, Taylor said. ‘Lenders are definitely willing to work with borrowers, but they’re requiring borrowers to come to the table with some sort of additional skin in the game,’ he said.”

Toronto.com in Canada. “As Canada’s automotive, steel and aluminum industries grapple with the threat of job losses due to U.S. tariffs, bidding activity has reached a standstill in several Ontario housing markets. A recent Wahi analysis found nearly two-thirds (65 per cent) of GTA homes sold for less than the list price in March. Condominiums were especially likely to sell for below asking (75 per cent), compared to single-family homes (58 per cent). According to that analysis, the softest market last month was Halton region, where only one quarter of homes sold at (3 per cent) or above (22 per cent) asking. In some cases, homes in the Greater Toronto Area are being relisted for up to $400,000 below their original sale price, according to Zoocasa.”

“Sales in the Hamilton, Burlington, Haldimand County and Niagara North market areas fell to 701 units in March, marking the lowest level reported for that month since 2009. Some onlookers may be wondering whether we’ll see an end to bidding wars. For example, in a common scenario, a realtor may intentionally underprice a property to attract multiple purchasers, setting off a bidding war. ‘I don’t think we’ll ever see an end to that in Toronto,’ said Benjy Katchen, CEO of RPS-Wahi. ‘It’s just a question of the cycle. It might be a pause for three or four months, but I don’t think we’ll ever see an end to that. It’s just so culturally ingrained to how real estate is in this city.'”

Scoop New Zealand. “QV operations manager James Wilson said market conditions remained ‘pretty soft’ across Aotearoa. ‘Residential property values continue to bubble up and down slightly from month to month but have been kept virtually motionless as a whole throughout the first quarter of 2025.’ ‘Job worries and a rise in unemployment are causing many to be cautious and play it safe right now, which is understandable. This is one factor that has helped to keep the brakes on throughout the first quarter of 2025 – a sizeable surplus of properties for sale is another,’ he said. ‘It seems sellers are out in force across Aotearoa today. You don’t have to walk very far around the neighbourhood these days to see a ‘for sale’ sign. Ample properties for sale and a lack of meaningful competition are helping keep prices really flat for now.'”

Western Australia Today. “One of Western Australia’s largest home builders has raised eyebrows after it bought vacant blocks of land in popular housing estates and built houses on them in less than 12 months – even as it faces a class action over thousands of building contracts that have languished for years. A BGC spokesman said the properties were part of a small program of ‘shell homes’ the company constructed as part of a trial of alternative, faster methods. ‘While appearing complete externally, these homes are literally structural shells, with no internal finishing, to avoid competing with the already high demand for finishing trades in Perth,’ he said.”

“BGC customer Amanda was handed the keys to her new traditionally constructed home in Brabham in February this year, nearly three years after signing a contract in July 2022. ‘It’s been nothing but a circus,’ she said. ‘We were told the delays were due to labour shortages, but our neighbours’ house was completed in eight months.’ Amanda said she and her husband were currently undertaking processes with regulator Building and Energy after reporting more than 100 defects.”

“‘We had a broken window from when the bricks went up, drainage and roofing issues, issues with the paint, the doors didn’t line up and flues were attached with duct tape and cable ties. Only 5 per cent of the problems have been fixed, out of 151 defects,’ she said. ‘100 per cent I will never build again. I’m pissed BGC is building and selling houses built so quickly.'”