While reports of homebuyers fleeing cities for the suburbs due to coronavirus have sometimes been overstated, the trend is still clear for those with a close-up view of the real estate market.
"You've got to understand, we had nine million folks relocate over this pandemic, and they're going to more rural areas, more suburban areas," Mike Miedler, CEO of Century 21, a real estate agent franchise company, told Cheddar. "In fact, if you look at the inventory in those marketplaces, they're down considerably compared to the cities."
Miedler noted that places such as his native New Jersey have benefited from the out-migration, while major cities such as San Francisco, Boston, and New York have lost residents — though he predicts those same places will make a comeback after the pandemic.
"That's not to say the cities won't come back," he said. "New York will be strong and alive for many, many years to come — greatest city on the face of the Earth — but right now people are looking for more property in rural and more suburban communities."
Some of the hottest destinations, he added, are mountain towns with plenty of vacation homes.
"In fact, I just talked to our folks up in Jackson Hole[, Wyoming]," he said. "They're up 375 percent from last year because you've got a lot of people who are looking for, again, more property or vacation homes. Vacation homes are on fire across the country. I think they're up over 20 percent year-over-year."
Within Century 21, meanwhile, COVID has meant a period of adjustment, as agents transition to working with clients remotely for much of the real estate process. This does not mean that technology is taking over the agent-driven business, though, Miedler stressed.
"There's 180 steps in the real estate process, from the time that you actually look online and make an offer until the time you close and hand over those keys, and now more than ever you need a real estate professional who knows their local market inside and out to help navigate that process," he said.
The Rev. Al Sharpton is set to lead a protest march on Wall Street to urge corporate America to resist the Trump administration’s campaign to roll back diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. The New York civil rights leader will join clergy, labor and community leaders Thursday in a demonstration through Manhattan’s Financial District that’s timed with the anniversary of the Civil Rights-era March on Washington in 1963. Sharpton called DEI the “civil rights fight of our generation." He and other Black leaders have called for boycotting American retailers that scaled backed policies and programs aimed at bolstering diversity and reducing discrimination in their ranks.
President Donald Trump's administration last month awarded a $1.2 billion contract to build and operate what's expected to become the nation’s largest immigration detention complex to a tiny Virginia firm with no experience running correction facilities.
Chipmaker Nvidia is poised to release a quarterly report that could provide a better sense of whether the stock market has been riding an overhyped artificial intelligence bubble or is being propelled by a technological boom that’s still gathering momentum.
Cracker Barrel said late Tuesday it’s returning to its old logo after critics — including President Donald Trump — protested the company’s plan to modernize.
Low-value imports are losing their duty-free status in the U.S. this week as part of President Donald Trump's agenda for making the nation less dependent on foreign goods. A widely used customs exemption for international shipments worth $800 or less is set to end starting on Friday. Trump already ended the “de minimis” rule for inexpensive items sent from China and Hong Kong, but having to pay import taxes on small parcels from everywhere else likely will be a big change for some small businesses and online shoppers. Purchases that previously entered the U.S. without needing to clear customs will be subject to the origin country’s tariff rate, which can range from 10% to 50%.
Southwest Airlines will soon require plus-size travelers to pay for an extra seat in advance if they can't fit within the armrests of one seat. This change is part of several updates the airline is making. The new rule starts on Jan. 27, the same day Southwest begins assigning seats. Currently, plus-size passengers can pay for an extra seat in advance and later get a refund, or request a free extra seat at the airport. Under the new policy, refunds are still possible but not guaranteed. Southwest said in a statement it is updating policies to prepare for assigned seating next year.
Cracker Barrel is sticking with its new logo. For now. But the chain is also apologizing to fans who were angered when the change was announced last week.
Elon Musk on Monday targeted Apple and OpenAI in an antitrust lawsuit alleging that the iPhone maker and the ChatGPT maker are teaming up to thwart competition in artificial intelligence.
