Robyn A. Friedman

(12/3/25)  An analysis by Zillow and Thumbtack released on Nov. 13 found that the hidden costs of homeownership – including insurance, maintenance and property taxes – now add up to $15,979 per year nationwide. That comes to an additional $1,325 per month on top of the principal and interest portion of a typical mortgage payment.   The hidden costs in some markets are even higher. In New York City, for example, they total $24,381 per year, while in San Francisco, they come to

(10/23/25)  Who doesn’t love Halloween? The costumes, the candy, the kids?   But, for some people, Halloween goes way beyond trick-or-treat – it’s a way of life. And those folks will be happy to know that there are towns where you can live Halloween 365 days a year, not just for one night.   Zillow recently identified 13 “boo-tiful” towns where residents can embrace Halloween year-round, in communities with rich histories, plenty of charm and, perhaps, a little bit of spookin

(10/17/25)  If you’re in the market for an apartment, there’s (finally) some good news for you.   According to Zillow, rental affordability is better than it’s been in four years. Thanks to a surge of demand for housing during the pandemic, builders responded and finished more multifamily units in 2024 than any year in a half-century. While that is not necessarily good news for apartment owners, who are facing an oversupply of available apartments and increased competition fo

(10/1/25)  If you’re in the market for a fixer-upper, expect to face more competition for available homes. According to a recent analysis...

(9/16/25)  In which metro do insurance costs consume the largest chunk of your monthly housing cost?   Not surprisingly, it’s Miami,...

(8/26/25) If you think your house was expensive, you may reconsider that after reading the results of a new report from Realtor.com that...