A report from the Wall Street Journal. "With rent growth flattening out and home prices continuing to shoot up, renting is starting to look like a better choice than buying for the first time in years. Home-price appreciation is outpacing rent growth in all 23 of the metropolitan areas tracked by a national index produced by Florida Atlantic University and Florida International University faculty. When home-price growth outpaces rent growth, that can be a sign of a bubble because it indicates people are paying more than necessary merely to find a place to live. In a few key markets the index is moving into alarming territory. In Dallas, Denver and Houston, renting is the most favorable it has been in the history of the index, suggesting significantly overheated housing markets there."

From Slate Magazine. "In October, the share of New York City rentals that took a price cut, according to the listing tracker Streeteasy, topped 42 percent—the highest level since December 2010. The real estate firm Citi Habitats, which draws data from its own listings, reports that the vacancy rate in Manhattan has climbed to 2.1 percent, its highest level since 2009. Both of those indicators, in other words, are back in Great Recession territory. 'It’s a renter’s market right now,' says Chris Lee, the director of sales at Triplemint, a real estate startup."

"And because the problem of high rents is so general to American cities right now, if New York’s rental bubble is about to pop, it may offer a lesson to places like Los Angeles. Urban wonk Stephen Smith has been collecting some of these listings. A Williamsburg one bedroom down to $2,500 from $3,500 in 2014—with a free month’s rent. An East Village one bedroom at $2,695—same as its rent in August 2009—and still unrented. A Hell’s Kitchen one bedroom, rented in 2014 for $3,750, down to $3,250, and still unrented."

"A two bedroom in Downtown Brooklyn down 30 percent since July—with two free months. A two bedroom in Williamsburg down $600 from last year, with two months free. A brand-new apartment overlooking Prospect Park, down more than $600 to $2,940 since it was first listed in July—and still available. A studio in the West 30s listed for less than it rented in 2013. A three bedroom on the Upper East Side that, after eight price chops, is back to its 2010 rent—and down more than $1,000 since 2013. Oh, and the apartment comes with two free months—on a 16-month lease."

The Washington Post. "With one month to go, the D.C. region’s housing market is about to close out one of its strongest years since the housing boom. Housing prices have moderated since hitting a record high earlier this year. Arlington County and Alexandria saw their median prices decrease dramatically. Arlington’s median price sank to $525,000 from $569,000. Alexandria’s median price slid to $499,000 from $545,000."

The Daily Camera in Colorado. "This weekend, the Lilly family will be moving into their brand-new Longmont home for the second time this year. John and Edie Lilly, their two daughters and two dogs have spent the past three months in a two-bedroom apartment after leaks in their newly built house caused a health-threatening mold contamination and forced half the family to sleep in a tent on the back porch for the summer."

"Despite the home being under a 12-month warranty, the Lillys allege builder Meritage Homes Corp., based in Scottsdale, Ariz., failed to properly mitigate the damage when it first became apparent in June and refused to take further action when confronted with the family's ongoing issues. So far, the Lillys say the problem has cost them nearly $50,000 in doctor bills, mold inspections and removal, lawyer fees, and rent and mortgage payments as the 6,000-square-foot home sat empty on its lot in the Renaissance subdivision in southwest Longmont."

"'We bought a new house because we wanted it to be hassle free,' said John Lilly. 'Instead, we got a lemon.'"

From MarketWatch. "The Dallas Police and Fire Pension Plan has received a lot of press attention recently. My view is that the situation is extraordinary and says little about what is going on with state and local pensions generally. It is a story of wild investments that produced large losses and a very large Deferred Retirement Option Plan (DROP)."

"As a result of poor investment policy and consistent underfunding, the Dallas Police and Fire fund went from having enough assets to cover 72 percent of its liabilities in January 2011 to having only 45 percent in January 2016. Subsequently, in 2016, when the DROP participants caught wind of talks to reduce their benefits, they took notice of the steep decline in asset values and started withdrawing their money, exacerbating the problem. The funded ratio at this point probably stands at around 35 percent."

"The investment problems stem from 2006 when the Board decided to diversify its investment strategy to reduce the risks associated with equities. These diversified investments included luxury homes in Hawaii, student housing in Texas, and raw land in Idaho and Colorado. A Dallas Morning News expose in 2013 describes one of the Hawaiian homes as consisting of six buildings, a championship golf course, two infinity pools, a sculpture garden and a large entertainment pavilion. In 2013, it had been on the market for five years with no one willing to pay the asking price of $22 million, so the fund – which managed these investments internally – started renting it out for as much as $15,000 per night to recoup some of its operating costs."

"Returns initially looked good, in large part because the properties had not been regularly appraised and, in some cases, improvements and operating costs had been added to their original value. Once the assets were revalued, the losses were evident."