More People Are Inheriting Their Homes.
About 18% of all property transfers in the state last year, representing nearly
60,000 homes, were made through inheritance, according to a recent
analysis by real-estate data firm Cotality.
That share is a record for California in data going back to 1995, up from
12% in 2019. It is also roughly double the national share of 8.8% last year.
The state’s high rate of inherited homes reflects California’s unique
circumstances: years of skyrocketing home prices, and tax policies that
encourage owners to avoid selling their houses before they die.
But the high rate of homes passed on after death is distorting the state’s
housing market, favoring longtime homeowners and their families over all
other home buyers.
Some politicians and housing economists want to increase the
capital-gains exclusion for home sales to encourage older people to sell
their homes before death.
Investors Owning 100+ Homes Banned from Further Purchases.
President Donald Trump is pushing a policy that would prevent investors
who already own more than 100 single-family homes from purchasing
additional properties which is stricter than the market expected.
The White House is currently considering including this content in
housing-related legislation that will be passed by Congress. Banning
large-scale investors from purchasing single-family homes is a core
campaign promise of the second Trump administration. President Trump is
expected to discuss these plans in detail during his first State of the Union
address of his second term on the 24th.
Skepticism has also been raised among housing economists. They suggest
that because the percentage of total housing stock owned by investment
firms is relatively low, the policy may not significantly impact price
stabilization or supply expansion.
U.S. Home Prices Rose 1.3% Last Year.
President Donald Trump is pushing a policy that would prevent investors
who already own more than 100 single-family homes from purchasing
additional properties which is stricter than the market expected.
The White House is currently considering including this content in
housing-related legislation that will be passed by Congress. Banning
large-scale investors from purchasing single-family homes is a core
campaign promise of the second Trump administration. President Trump is
expected to discuss these plans in detail during his first State of the Union
address of his second term on the 24th.
Skepticism has also been raised among housing economists. They suggest
that because the percentage of total housing stock owned by investment
firms is relatively low, the policy may not significantly impact price
stabilization or supply expansion.
The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller National Home Price
Index rose 1.3% year-over-year as of December, according to data released
on the 24th. S&P noted that this is the weakest annual gain since 2011,
when prices fell by 3.9%.
When considering that the U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI)
rose 2.7% during the same period, home price appreciation actually failed to
keep pace with inflation. This growth rate is also significantly lower than the
average annual increase of 6.6% seen over the last 10 years. S&P explained
that persistent high mortgage rates kept potential buyers on the sidelines,
contributing to the slowdown in price growth.
Major southern cities, often called the Sun Belt, had previously seen rapid
price spikes due to a population influx following the pandemic. However,an
analyst noted that “structural factors—mortgage rates and inflation—have
reshaped the market landscape over the past few years”.
A Zombie Tower Sits on Miami’s Waterfront.
Two Roads took control of the building in 2022 after buying out residents and
everyone moved out. The developer planned to demolish the 1964 property and
replace it with a luxury condo tower in partnership with Marriott’s Edition hotel brand.
Ten unit owners refused the buyouts and sued to block the teardown. A Florida
court ruled that Two Roads improperly changed the condo bylaws to enable it
to proceed with taking over the building.
The developers managed to buy out most of the building’s ownership but failed
to get everyone to sign. In an effort to take the building over, the developer
altered the voting rights of the owners to terminate the condo.
The court ruled that the developer couldn’t amend the condo rules to terminate
without the consent of every resident, per the building’s original condo documents.
Americans Are Leaving the U.S. In Record Numbers.
Last year the U.S. experienced something that hasn’t definitively occurred since
the Great Depression: More people moved out than moved in. The Trump
administration has hailed the exodus— negative net migration— as the
fulfillment of its promise to ramp up deportations and restrict new visas.
Beneath the stormy optics of that immigration crackdown, however, lies a
less-noticed reversal: America’s own citizens are leaving in record numbers,
replanting themselves and their families in lands they find more afford–able and safe.
The U.S. experienced net negative migration—an estimated loss of some
150,000 people—in 2025, and the outflow will likely increase in 2026, according
to calculations by the Brookings Institution, a public-policy think tank.
“It undercuts this American exceptionalism, ‘we have the best quality of life,
we’re the best country in the world, everyone wants to move here,’” said Caitlin
Joyce, one of two researchers at Temple University.
Iranian Force Likely Will Defend Regime.
U.S. and Israeli airstrikes killed many of Iran’s top leaders in just hours,
including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. But the huge security
apparatus they oversaw to ensure the regime’s survival is still intact.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps(IRGC) is best known as an armed force
of nearly 200,000 paramilitary members. It also functions as a parallel
government and economic force whose main mission is defending the Islamic
regime formed after the 1979 Revolution, and influential throughout the Middle
East. The IRGC has its own military and intelligence divisions separate from the
conventional armed forces, and is deeply entrenched in the country’sbusinesses.
Without occupying the country and putting troops on the ground, toppling the
regime will be “extremely difficult,” said Richard Fontaine, the chief executive of
the Center for a New American Security, a Washington think tank, in a social-media post.
Current Internation Oil price and it’s future.
Crude Oil prices are currently experiencing a sharp surge due to heightened
geographical tension in the Middle East, specifically involving direct conflicts
between the U.S./Israel and Iran — Brent Crude: $81.61~$82.38/
WTI: $74.85~$75.63.
Key Market Drivers – Geopolitical Risk: Potential blockades of the Strait of
Hormuz and direct military escalations have triggered supply chain anxieties,
driving prices upward. Future Outlook: Analysts warn that if the conflict
escalates further, Brent crude could potentially soar to the $90–$100 range.
Economists warn that a 15% in oil prices which makes central banks hesitate to continue interest cuts.
It’s not just the oil price: shipping insurance and freight rates through the
Strait of Hormuz have tripled, adding a security premium to nearly all imported
goods, but beneficial to energy sector and defense industries.
Investors are rotating out of risky assets into Gold and Treasury bonds.
