For those still in need of a date for Valentine’s Day, real estate website Trulia.com has some advice — buy a house.
In a survey of 1,000 singletons conducted for Trulia.com and cited by CNN, more than a third of women and 18 percent of men said they would much rather date a homeowner than someone who rents their apartment. Just 2 percent of women said they preferred to date a man who rents, while only 3 percent of men said they would choose a woman who rents over one who owns her home. [more]
Navigating the real estate market can be a fraught endeavor — and, as one couple found out, getting pre-approval on a mortgage can be as important as finding the right home. In this Current TV segment, one couple explains its path to apartment ownership and the subprime mortgage crisis that derailed others.
The Obama administration plans to use $4.25 billion in economic
stimulus money for the creation of subsidized rental housing units in
cities across the country. The money would pay for both the
construction of new apartment buildings and the refurbishment of
foreclosed homes. An additional $4 billion of the $14 billion that the
Department of Housing and Urban Development received from the federal
stimulus package will go toward repairing the nation’s current public
housing stock. The program marks a drastic shift from former President
George W. Bush’s “ownership society,” the idea that the ultimate goal
for all Americans should be home ownership. But opponents of the Obama
administration’s proposal warn that sometimes rent can be more
expensive than a mortgage. [more]
