Despite passage of at least 140 housing bills, California has made little progress in solving its 2.5-million-home shortfall, a panel of experts told Realtors last week. California’s municipalities issue fewer than 120,000 new home permits each year, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. But economists estimate the state needs to build 180,000 to … Read more
“How expensive?” tracks measurements of California’s totally unaffordable housing market. The pain: Even California’s “bargain” rents look expensive on a national scale. The source: My trusty spreadsheet reviewed 2023 average rent statistics from ApartmentList for 518 larger markets across the US – including 75 in California. ApartmentList’s figures combine pricing from landlord listings and Census … Read more
THOUSAND OAKS — The common narrative when a young team makes the postseason is that the players are just happy to be there. They aren’t supposed to be here, they’re in the playoffs ahead of schedule, so they’ve already overachieved. So here the Rams are, in the postseason, ahead of schedule after winning 10 games … Read more
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory laid off 100 contractors last week and warned that more layoffs may be coming as the facility braces for sharp federal budget cuts to a program aimed at bringing pieces of Mars to Earth. In a Thursday email to employees, JPL director Laurie Leshin said NASA is expecting a budget that … Read more
California’s renters got a mild breather in 2023. When my trusty spreadsheet looked at ApartmentList’s rent data – a curious mix of landlord listings and Census stats – it’s clear that the Golden State remains a pricey place to be a tenant, even after pandemic-era rent hikes ended last year. The stats track rents in … Read more
By AUDREY McAVOY and DAVID KOENIG Federal officials on Saturday ordered the immediate grounding of some Boeing 737 Max 9 jetliners until they are inspected after an Alaska Airlines plane suffered a blowout that left a gaping hole in the side of the fuselage. This photo provided by an unnamed source shows the damaged part … Read more
Welcome to another presidential election year in which political theater will, no doubt, impact California’s economy. It’s a given that the quadrennial battle for control of the White House injects uncertainty into spending plans for corporations and consumers alike. Yet, you can also assume that the political parties in power will do what they can … Read more
Lakers star Anthony Davis, right, reacts as he is stripped of the ball by Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant during the first half on Friday night at Crypto.com Arena. The Lakers lost for the 10th time in 13 games to drop two games below .500. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) Lakers star LeBron James drives … Read more
Stock performance clobbered home prices in 2023, the year after the reverse was true. My trusty spreadsheet looked at a half-century of stock-trading patterns (the Wilshire 5000-stock index) and home-price swings (the Federal Housing Finance Agency US index) to determine how these two assets vary in price fluctuations. Consider that the Wilshire was up 25% … Read more
Southern California added 21,700 real estate workers in the past year, a hiring pace faster than the overall job market. My trusty spreadsheet found property-linked employment in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, and San Bernardino counties was 803,700 in November 2023. That’s off 1,200 for the month, but in pre-pandemic 2015-19, 2,020 jobs were cut on … Read more
