COVERAGE INFORMATION:
California Department of Real Estate (DRE) NEWS CLIPS service coverage:
Monday through Friday (except state holidays) each week includes electronic format articles retrieved from newspapers or news services that report real estate related news in California and some national services. Coverage is for California newspapers that are available electronically via the Internet - and any significant related breaking news.
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Copyright © , California Department of Real Estate
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Thursday, April 16, 2026
Top Stories
The Iran war shocked L.A.’s housing market. Recovery won’t be simple
JACK FLEMMING, Los Angeles Times (Subscription)
Katie Davis has whiplash. A longtime renter, she’s in the market for her first home, but she needs mortgage rates to drop in order to afford the monthly payments. Anything under 6% would be feasible. For the last year, she’s been tracking them like a hawk. She watched them fall from 7% last spring to 6.5% last fall until they finally dipped below 6% in February. “I thought my time had finally come,” Davis said. Days later, a series of airstrikes kicked off the Iran war, spiking mortgage rates. Then, this month, the U.S. struck a ceasefire deal, bringing rates back down again. During that stretch, Davis has waffled between hopeless and hopeful on a weekly basis.
New York Bill Targets Private Listings, Could Reshape Inventory Access and Buyer Competition
CZARINNA ANDRES, National Mortgage Professional
New York lawmakers are moving to rein in private listing networks, introducing legislation that would require most residential properties to be publicly marketed — a shift that could reshape how homes are brought to market and how originators engage with inventory.
National News
We’re Building More Affordable Housing These Days. It’s Still Not Enough.
JULIA ECHIKSON, New York Times (Subscription)
From 2010 through 2024, construction of affordable — that is, income-restricted — housing grew by 73 percent, more than double the pace of market-rate apartments. In 2024, affordable units accounted for nearly 14 percent of newly completed rental stock, up from just 9 percent a decade earlier.
Home Builders Are Getting Stingy with Basic Materials
CRAIG KARMIN, Wall Street Journal (Subscription)
Home builders need to cut costs. They are looking to do so with cheaper cabinets, faucets and countertops. Their cost-cutting is part of a broader effort to offer more affordable homes when buyers are concerned about high prices, elevated mortgage rates and an uncertain economy. The cumulative effect is changing the appearance of newly constructed American homes.
Cities Invest In 3D Printing Homes To Solve Housing Challenges
JEFFIFER CASTENSON, Forbes
Several years ago, 3D printing homes was a sexy, futuristic idea. Startups were jumping on the bandwagon to leverage the appeal but mostly delivering on the novelty and less on the practicality of the solution. Now, 3D printing companies are working with local jurisdictions to leverage the cost efficiency of the process to deliver more affordable housing solutions in their markets.
California News
What a $200,000 salary can actually buy you in the Bay Area housing market
JESSICA ROY, San Francisco Chronicle (Subscription)
It’s a topic that recently came up in a popular post on the Bay Area subreddit titled “What a $200K salary really buys in 10 Bay Area cities (2026).” The analysis oversimplified several elements of the home-buying equation, but it raised a good question: What kind of house can you buy with a $200K salary in the Bay Area? Where can you find something affordable, and what areas are totally out of reach? And how should you think about building a home-buying budget, at any salary?
Cities scramble to comply with or fight major state housing law
BEN CHRISTOPHER, CalMatters
For California’s local governments hoping to have some say over where and how large apartment buildings get packed near major transit stops, it’s crunch time. Last fall, state lawmakers made it legal for developers to build mid-rises — some as tall as nine stories — in major metro neighborhoods near train, subway and certain dedicated bus stops. But the final version of Senate Bill 79, which goes into effect on July 1, offered local governments plenty of wiggle room over the where, when and how of the new law. With the summer deadline rapidly approaching, cities across the state are starting to wiggle.
Industry News
USPS financial crisis puts real estate transactions at risk
JESSI HEALEY, Inman (Subscription)
The U.S. Postal Service may run out of cash by early 2027. For real estate agents and brokers, the fallout could show up in the middle of a deal. Postmaster General David Steiner told a House Oversight subcommittee on March 17 that “in about a year from now, the Postal Service will be unable to deliver the mail if we maintain the status quo.” Without congressional intervention, delivery day reductions and post office closures are on the table, outcomes that would disrupt a transaction pipeline that still depends on physical mail more than many agents might realize.
Real Estate Technology
Mortgage lenders face strict new AI governance under GSE mandates
FLAVIA FURLAN NUNES, HousingWire (Subscription)
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac issued new AI and machine learning governance expectations for approved seller/servicers. Attorneys say the standards extend beyond underwriting into vendor and operational tools, requiring inventories, controls and audit-ready documentation.
Property News
Empty Department Stores Are Housing Cleveland’s Booming Population
JESSICA FLINT, Wall Street Journal (Subscription)
In downtown Cleveland, renters are moving back to the future as architectural icons from the city’s early-1900s golden age are reborn as modern apartments. While office-to-residential conversions gained national attention post-pandemic, Cleveland has spent about 50 years refining the practice.
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