Q: We enjoy feeding the ducks behind our house. Our community association is telling us that we can no longer feed them because it’s causing problems in our community. Can they stop us from doing it? — Graham

A: Feeding ducks and other wildlife can be a relaxing and enjoyable activity that brings you closer to nature. However, it is common...Read more

Mortgage rates in the U.S. increased for a second week, adding to costs for homebuyers already facing a precarious economy.

The average for 30-year, fixed loans rose slightly to 6.24%, up from 6.22% last week, Freddie Mac said in a statement Thursday.

Homebuyers have been reluctant to jump into the market, even with rates now well below year-...Read more

Zillow has been slammed with yet another lawsuit — this time for allegedly incentivizing its affiliated agents to pressure homebuyers into using Zillow’s mortgage business.

The Seattle-based real estate giant is most known for its real estate listing website, but it is also a brokerage and lending agency.

In a lawsuit filed last week with ...Read more

With the average mortgage rate near 6%, U.S. homebuyers are looking at the most affordable monthly payments in a year. But San Antonio real estate agent Tavyn Weyman knows how to get them lower — much lower.

The trick is simple: buy new.

In markets across the U.S., homebuilders sitting on unsold inventory are subsidizing mortgage rates so ...Read more

If you’re a first-time homebuyer with a tight budget, should you consider a fixer-upper? It depends whether you’re willing to be uncomfortable — possibly for a long time.

For some, buying a fixer-upper is a great way to build equity and customize their home. For others, it’s a source of inescapable stress.

“Maybe they’ve never even...Read more

Los Angeles strengthened its rent stabilization law for the first time in 40 years Wednesday, setting a 4% ceiling on annual rent increases for a massive portion of the city’s housing stock.

The historic vote by the L.A. City Council will help set rents for decades to come for tenants who live in units built before 1978 — nearly half of the...Read more

Valerie Valentine bought a triplex in South Los Angeles two weeks ago, and already she wonders whether she made a terrible investment.

Bills are immediately adding up for the small-time landlord, from $1,000 to get the water turned on to $6,000 in annual property taxes. She worries that the amount she collects in rent will not be enough to ...Read more

Days after Donald Trump’s party lost several key election contests that centered on cost-of-living concerns, the president floated the prospect of a 50-year mortgage to help voters tackle one of their top concerns: housing affordability.

“All it means is you pay less per month,” Trump said in an interview that aired on Monday.

Yet the ...Read more

The furious push by AI hyperscalers to build out data centers will need about $1.5 trillion of investment-grade bonds over the next five years and extensive funding from every other corner of the market, according to an analysis by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

“The question is not ‘which market will finance the AI-boom?’ Rather, the question is �...Read more

Seattle-area homeowners are holding onto their properties at record rates — jamming up the region’s normal cycle of buying and selling.

Redfin tracks home turnover rates by looking at what percentage of a region’s overall homes changed ownership over a period of time. In the first nine months of this year, just 20 out of every 1,000 homes...Read more

For almost as long as the artificial intelligence boom has been in full swing, there have been warnings of a speculative bubble that could rival the dot-com craze of the late 1990s that ended in a spectacular crash and a wave of bankruptcies.

Tech firms are spending hundreds of billions of dollars on advanced chips and data centers, not just ...Read more

The median age of first-time homebuyers in the U.S. has climbed to a record of 40 as soaring prices and mortgage rates over the last few years delay homeownership for millions of Americans.

The age at which people purchase their first home has climbed rapidly since 2021, when the median was 33, according to a National Association of Realtors ...Read more

No risk, no return!

How many times have you heard that phrase or something similar?

It’s usually meant to encourage. A rallying cry for entrepreneurship, industry and capitalism, it also alludes to the inverse — that high risk translates into high return. But when it comes to investing, it isn’t quite so simple.

Risk vs. return in ...Read more

It’s cozy season — a time when people keep out the chill by shutting windows, curling up on the couch with a steaming mug of tea and switching on a space heater. But that can invite an unwanted house guest — mold.

Mold is a common problem in Washington, where rainy weather creates the ideal conditions for spores to grow and thrive. If it ...Read more

If you remember the turmoil of the global financial crisis, hearing that foreclosure activity is up might make your knees weak and palms sweaty. I know I can’t help it.

After reading recent reports of climbing foreclosures, I spoke with experts ranging from real estate data companies to non-profit debt counselors to foreclosure auction sites....Read more

The winter holidays are a time for dusting off decorations and observing traditions — but they’re also rife with money decisions.

Americans are choosing how much to spend on travel, gifts and decorations in today’s economy, along with how they’ll make those purchases. Some holiday shoppers and travelers plan to use credit cards, but ...Read more

In a perfect world, no one would need to take out a loan to consolidate and pay off debt. In the real world, however, sometimes borrowing money is the only way to dig your way out.

This is mostly due to high interest rates on credit cards. With the average credit card APR (annual percentage rate) at 20.01 percent as of October 2025, consumers ...Read more