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Bitcoin nears $90,000 as crypto market exceeds pandemic-era peak

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Bitcoin’s record-breaking rally took the digital asset close to $90,000 for the first time and lifted the overall value of the crypto market above its pandemic-era peak as traders bet on a boom under President-elect Donald Trump.

The largest token has jumped about 32% since the U.S. election on Nov. 5, hitting an all-time high of $89,599 on ...Read more

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'A Real Pain' review: Eisenberg delivers thoughtful study of 2 hurting men

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Hearing the title “A Real Pain,” you can’t help but imagine a multi-camera sitcom or, perhaps, a disposable laugher starring Adam Sandler.

In reality, this second directorial feature from Jesse Eisenberg — who also wrote and co-stars in the film — is a thoughtful study of two characters dealing with sadness and depression in their own...Read more

Matias J. Ocner/Miami Herald/TNS

Lower taxes, higher tariffs: What Trump's tax plans mean for you

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Taxes may not be the first thing on your mind following the presidential election, but there’s no doubt that tax policy will play a key role in the year ahead, given that the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) is set to expire at the end of 2025.

The TCJA was the largest overhaul of the tax code in three decades, with massive changes for both ...Read more

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Bitcoin hits another record high in 'undeniable bull market'

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Bitcoin continued its relentless surge higher, climbing above $88,000 for the first time, boosted by President-elect Donald Trump’s embrace of digital assets and the prospect of a Congress featuring pro-crypto lawmakers.

Trump’s decisive victory in the presidential election has prompted celebratory chest-thumping from the digital-asset ...Read more

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Tesla fans go all in driving $300 billion rally on Trump win

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Tesla Inc. fans have been reinvigorated by Donald Trump’s presidential triumph. The stock’s climb has been seemingly unstoppable as investors pile into the shares, confident that a second Trump term will bring windfalls to the Elon Musk-led electric vehicle maker.

All together, the stock has advanced over 39%, adding more than $300 billion ...Read more

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Inherited IRA rules: 7 things all beneficiaries must know

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

An inherited IRA may be the most complex issue to handle well when wrapping up an estate. If you’ve recently inherited an individual retirement account, you can find yourself at the tricky three-way intersection of estate planning, financial planning and tax planning. One wrong decision can lead to expensive consequences, and good luck trying ...Read more

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Trillion-dollar companies: 9 most valuable mega-cap stocks

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

The most valuable companies in the world have grown to impressive heights in recent years, with nine publicly traded companies reaching market capitalizations of roughly $1 trillion or more. All but one of the companies come from the tech sector, with many offering products and services that consumers use every day. Several of them also made it ...Read more

Real estate Q&A: Who's responsible for hedge damaged by landscaper?

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Q: The landscaper hired by our HOA for the community damaged a large hedge in our yard that now must be replaced. My HOA says the damage is not their responsibility and that I must resolve the problem myself. Do I have to deal directly with the landscape company? —Jo Ann

A: No, your community association will need to deal with this problem. ...Read more

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Las Vegas real estate market on 'wild ride' for past 5 years: Zillow

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Las Vegas’ residential real estate market has been on a “wild ride” for the past five years but could finally be getting off the roller coaster ride that started during the pandemic, according to new statistical analysis from Zillow.

The Las Vegas market recently entered more “balanced territory,” said Kara Ng, a senior economist with...Read more

Alejandro A. Alvarez/The Philadelphia Inquirer/TNS

Other cities want less self-storage. Philadelphia can't get enough of it

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

PHILADELPHIA — On a windblown stretch of the Delaware riverfront in late September, an array of local leaders lined up to praise a new use for Pier 40.

After sitting derelict for years, the monumental Beaux-Arts remnant of Philadelphia’s industrial history was sold to PrimeSpace Capital, and the New York-based developer refurbished its ...Read more

Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times/TNS

After a century, concrete plant that helped build LA makes way for a deluxe tower

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

If the new apartment tower had been planned for another plot of land, chances are good the concrete plant in the middle of the city would have helped build it.

But, as it happens, the century-old facility on La Brea Avenue that has provided concrete for buildings and roads across the Los Angeles region sat where the tower is to go up.

Now, the...Read more

Monica Herndon/The Philadelphia Inquirer/TNS

Older home buyers, more cash, and (relatively) fewer first-timers: A national survey sheds light on the state of the housing market

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Rising home prices are continuing both to benefit established homeowners and to challenge buyers trying to purchase their first home, according to the National Association of Realtors’ annual report surveying buyers and sellers.

“The U.S. housing market is split into two groups: first-time buyers struggling to enter the market and current ...Read more

Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune/TNS

Economic opportunity or environmental burden? Massive proposed real estate project ignites debate in Chicago

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

A massive commercial real estate project proposed for Chicago’s Southeast Side remains in limbo as its planners battle environmental activists over how best to rebuild the area’s economy.

A group backed by the Ozinga family wants to burrow several hundred feet beneath a contaminated former steel mill site and create a 6 million-square-foot ...Read more

Hyosub Shin/The Atlanta Journal-Constitution/TNS

Business and civic leaders remember Home Depot co-founder Bernie Marcus

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Bernie Marcus made his billions co-founding Home Depot with his partner Arthur Blank, creating one of the largest companies in Georgia. But civic and business leaders in the state remembered him for much more than his homegrown retail empire.

Known as an eternal optimist, a tough-as-nails negotiator and a natural salesperson, Marcus, a pillar ...Read more

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How to approach a season of excess with financial responsibility

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Americans are expected to spend a record amount (between $979.5 billion and $989 billion) on holiday gifts and décor this November and December, according to the National Retail Federation. Inflation and high interest rates are important parts of the story, but there’s not much evidence that people are planning to cut back, either.

Only 1 in...Read more

November Fed meeting preview: The Fed eyes another rate cut as elections, hurricane uncertainties loom

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Imagine driving a car with a windshield so muddy that your only choice is to look through the rearview mirror. It’s challenging to discern where you’re going solely based on where you’ve been. When judging what to do with interest rates, however, the Federal Reserve has no other choice.

The U.S. economy is looking a little bit brighter ...Read more

Bizuayehu Tesfaye/Las Vegas Review-Journal/TNS

Las Vegas' housing crisis taking center stage this presidential election

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

The Las Vegas Valley’s affordability and housing crisis is taking center stage this presidential election, a UNLV political scientist, said.

One demographic, in particular, should be paid close attention to as the election nears: Latinos, said John Tuman, executive associate dean of the College of Liberal Arts and professor of political ...Read more

Sajjad Hussain/AFP/Getty Images North America/TNS

Microsoft buys North Carolina megasite near the Research Triangle, but won't say why

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

One of the world’s most valuable companies took a North Carolina megasite off the market this week as Microsoft notified local officials on Thursday it had completed a $27 million purchase of the Person County Mega Park.

The 1,350-acre site sits below the Virginia border, about an hour’s drive north of Durham. Person officials said they ...Read more

Real estate Q&A: How do I convince HOA to enforce 'quiet time' rules?

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Q: My downstairs neighbor often hangs out on his porch, which is directly under ours, and due to his drinking and smoking pot, we hear loud, explicit conversations into the early morning hours at least twice a month. Our bylaws state that “quiet time” is between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m., but the HOA says they can only send him a reminder letter. I...Read more

Nelvin C. Cepeda/The San Diego Union-Tribune/TNS

San Diego's life science office buildings are sitting vacant. 'We just oversubscribed on space'

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

A couple of years ago, life science companies were fighting for office leases and developers couldn’t meet the demand fast enough. But now, that hunger for square footage has diminished, and the region’s available office and lab buildings have swelled to an all-time high.

The county’s total vacancy rate climbed to 20.4%, according to a ...Read more