Housing 'starts'— new constructions—signal the health and future of real estate

The Federal Reserve follows the health of the US economy by tracking the money supply

That includes all of the physical and electronic money in circulation. It tracks not only US coins and bills, but also the money that moves through bank deposits. The Fed uses metrics called trackers to follow different types of transactions through the money supply.

Construction of small, affordable starter homes has decreased 75% since the 1970s

Rising costs aren’t the only thing stopping first-time homebuyers from buying real estate—only 9% of recent new construction is for starter homes. The majority of new housing construction focuses on higher-end buyers due to the increased cost of land, labor, and resources.

In the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis, the Fed began a program of quantitative easing

This program injected trillions of dollars of new money into financial markets to stimulate the economy. The move catalyzed an 11-year bull run and was repeated during the pandemic. Experts argue such power could worsen wealth inequality and contribute to bubbles in housing and finance.

Why the employment report matters to Wall Street

On the first Friday of every month, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics releases the infamous "jobs report." The report essentially tracks how US employment is doing, from the unemployment rate to the number of people in the US currently on payroll. But most importantly, the jobs report has major implications for the economy at large. To find out how this monthly report impacts Wall Street, read this article.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta provides a monthly measure of home ownership affordability

Specifically, the Home Ownership Affordability Monitor shows a monthly measure of the median-income household's capacity to afford the median-priced home at the national level, the metro level, and more.

Visualizing 40 years of interest rates

The history of interest rates are a proxy of macroeconomic conditions, with higher interest rates indicating periods of decline requiring artificial central stimulation. In a series of charts illustrating rates and their background conditions, you can see the movement of the economy over a forty-year period ending in 2020. Dive into the data here.

The National Housing Act established the Federal Housing Administration

During the Great Depression, 1,000 homes were foreclosed on per day, and half of the mortgages across the country defaulted. To address this crisis, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the National Housing Act. It established the Federal Housing Administration, which is still around today and helps protect lenders and buyers.

One theory suggests real estate markets follow a predictable 18-year pattern

The theory dictates that real estate markets tend to experience about 14 years of growth, including a mid-cycle dip, then experience four years of decline. Real estate experts in London discuss the theory in an article.

The market share of institutional investors in the US housing market is less than 1%

Institutional investors have drawn negative media attention for their purported role in limiting housing supply and driving housing unaffordability. This report separates myth from fact in the nuanced discussion around institutional investors' role in the US housing market.

Visualizing how Americans spend their money

Almost half of all American consumer spending goes toward transportation and housing, at least according to 2023 data from the Consumer Expenditures Survey by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The survey found that the average American spends roughly $25K per year on housing. This colorful pie chart helps visualize shows how the average American spends their annual earnings—click here to see it.

US homeownership rates declined from the start of the Great Recession through 2016

In 2004, the US homeownership rate was 69%. When the bubble popped in 2007, due to a variety of factors (including the prevalence of subprime mortgages) the Great Recession began. Foreclosures increased, as did the ratio of renters to homeowners. In 2016, the homeownership rate was at roughly 63.4%.

US housing costs have risen by roughly 175% between 1991 and 2026—but a growing number of Gen Zers are becoming homeowners anyway. In 2025, 4% of homebuyers were Gen Z, up from 3% the year before.

Economists define deflation as a sustained decline in prices across an economy

Deflationary periods are characterized by broad, significant price declines. The Federal Reserve can monitor deflation by tracking prices through price indexes, such as the Consumer Price Index (CPI), which characterizes the average costs for consumers each month.

The clearest sign of a recession is a steady increase of job losses and high unemployment

The National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) looks at six key economic indicators, including industrial production, to determine when the economy is experiencing a recession.

Fracking rates may increase with the construction of new data centers

In Pennsylvania, plans to build at least five new facilities supported by gas-fired power plants are expected to escalate public health risks through surges in air and water pollution. Data center water demands are expected to further strain local resources.

The federal budget process begins nearly a year before funds are spent

Creating the federal budget starts months in advance. This resource explains each stage, showing how the president proposes priorities, Congress reshapes and approves funding, and federal agencies implement the final budget.

Owning a home can help build wealth via tax benefits and more

In addition to tax benefits and the potential to build equity in your home, houses are also typically considered an appreciating asset. That means their value is likely to increase over time.

More than $2.6B has been laundered through US real estate in the past 20 years

All cash real estate transactions don't require extensive background and identity checks, creating a loophole for criminals who would otherwise be flagged for suspicious behavior to clean large amounts of money with one purchase. Real estate prices are easily manipulated and can be used to generate more income by renting the space, making it an attractive and common tool for money laundering.

Real estate is grouped into broad categories: residential, commercial and industrial

Other categories of real estate include raw land and “special use” real estate, which includes cemeteries. Technically speaking, real estate is considered an alternative investment.

How the National Science Foundation supports the US economy

The NSF has filled funding gaps in the research and development of products developed in the private sector, particularly when the research requires more than three years to complete. These investments, including in startups such as Qualcomm and Symantec, have supported job creation, generated economic returns, and helped build the technologies many industries rely upon, such as the internet.

How house colors can indicate gentrification

Reporters from the Washington Post share an analysis that indicates gray and neutrally toned houses are signs of gentrification in a neighborhood. Visuals of different paint swatches help illustrate which colors are chosen for newly built homes in certain DC districts.

Euphoric narratives are just one indicator of an economic bubble

A conversation with investor Jeremy Grantham outlines the indicators he watches for bubbles, including extreme valuations. He then compares those signals to today’s AI boom, arguing it shows several early signs of classic speculative excess.

Why can't we just turn the empty offices into apartments?

As both rent prices and mortgage rates rise across the US, many companies have simultaneously continued operating hybrid or remote workforces post-pandemic. A podcast episode dives into why city dwellers aren't all living in their prepandemic break rooms just yet.

How the credit scoring system could change

Factoring rental payments into credit scores is just one proposed change some have suggested making to today’s credit scoring system to cater the system to renters as well as homeowners.

Explore hindcasting on climate models published since 1972

Hindcasting tests model forecasts against observational data to determine their accuracy. In this interactive, you can learn about the differences between eight climate models and evaluate them against available climate data.

Explore data on every US county with this interactive

The Community Explorer is an interactive tool that brings the power of big data and machine learning to the equity-related policy discussion. Search by economic profile and county and see the country from a different lens.

The idea for the Federal Reserve was conceived in secret in 1910—with bankers donning duck hunt gear for disguise while traveling to a remote country club on Georgia's Jekyll Island

In its famous catalog, Sears sold $600 DIY house kits from 1908 through the 1940s, resulting in an estimated 100,000 'Sears and Roebuck homes.'

The first steps to rebuilding your credit score include getting to know exactly what's on your credit report and figuring out how far you are from the '700 club,' or 'good score' range.

Explore an interactive map built from more than 100,000 survey responses on where people find joy in their lives

While the first exchange-traded fund (a 'basket' of different assets that can be bought and sold on a stock exchange) in the US only launched in 1993, the global ETF market has grown to more than $10T in the short time since.

The American Society of Civil Engineers' infrastructure report card gave the US a C in 2025, its highest grade since the project launched in 1998.

Calculate how much of your tax dollars go to each federal program based on your income, filing status, and number of children

Jimmy Carter signed a 1978 bill that legalized home brewing, a move credited with kick-starting the craft beer industry.

Before the current East Wing ballroom project, only two White House renovations in the past 100 years cost more than $10M.

Massive 3D printers have been used to build homes by stacking layers of 'concrete toothpaste,' a fire-resistant material that effectively insulates against outside noise.

Fish populations in the Great Barrier Reef have increased after installing waterproof speakers on the ocean floor that played recordings of sounds from healthy coral reefs.

How Amazon operates a 'flywheel' business model, a self-reinforcing cycle that drives continuous growth

Some coin denominations have ridges etched on their sides, partly to prevent counterfeiting, in a practice called 'reeding.'

Watch this video that uses Lego bricks to explain how venture capital works.

The first horror movie is believed to be George Méliès' 1986 short 'The Haunted Castle,' which pioneered the use of special effects

Scientists can determine Earth's past climate conditions by analyzing air trapped in microscopic bubbles within ice cores—columns of compressed snow layers that build up over hundreds of thousands of years.

Studies suggest when you sleep is as important as how much you get, and syncing with your circadian rhythms may lead to less fatigue and improved long-term health outcomes

Telehealth demand for GLP-1s for weight loss is booming as consumers seek easier access.

Human-to-human transmission of hantavirus remains extremely rare, so the 2026 hantavirus cruise ship outbreak doesn't mean we're facing a COVID-style pandemic risk.

How fusion—which releases energy when two lighter atoms combine to form a heavier atom—differs from fission

Shooting stars, or meteors, are fragments of asteroids and comets that burn up as they enter Earth's atmosphere, creating streaks in the sky called meteor showers.

Hear 50 years of iconic hip-hop samples, the genre's foundational looped tracks

The 19th-century painters of the Hudson River School were among the first American romantics, with portraits that displayed the natural beauty of the young country.

Doctors differentiate between a phobia and fear by asking patients whether their fear interferes with their day-to-day activities.