There seems to be no slowing down for the number of new homes built in Texas.

Builder confidence in the market for newly-built single-family homes remains strong thanks to low mortgage rates and positive job growth. Home building jumped in October by 3.8%, the strongest pace since the beginning of the year, largely because of construction in the West and South.

On Tuesday, Lawrence Yun, chief economist of the National Association of Realtors and fellow Forbes.com contributor, said the issuance of housing permits booming ahead to their highest level in over a decade is tremendously good news for the housing sector, explaining that permits are just paper, while housing starts are shovels in the ground and permits generally lead starts.

Yun added, At 1.46 million units on an annualized basis, housing permits are nearly to the level needed for the country over the long haul. Since new home construction kicks off the chain reaction of people trading up and trading down by buying new and selling their existing homes, more housing inventory will surely show up in the market next year.

To get a better idea of which cities are authorizing building permits for the highest-value homes, apartments and other residences, Apartment Guide explored building permits survey data from the U.S. Census Bureau, analyzing all new residential building permits filed in over 360 metropolitan areas from 1994 to July 2019.

Here's what Apartment Guide discovered: Although the South is home to just 38.1% of Americans, 51.9% of all building permits were for Southern residences. Similarly, 23.8% of Americans live in the West, yet 25.4% of all new residential construction was planned for that region. This may signify population growth in these areas. Between 2017 and 2018, the South and West had the fastest-growing cities nationwide, while numerous cities in the West were named some of the best places to find a job in 2019.

The average value of a newly-constructed single family home is roughly $245,000. The seaside cities of Honolulu, Sebastian-Vero Beach, Florida and Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, Florida, saw the greatest increases in the average valuation of new single-family homes between 2018 and 2019.

In the first half of 2019, the South saw the highest number of new housing units authorized with a total of 401,814. Western states were home to 196,610 new residences, while the Midwest and Northeast saw the fewest with 101,245 and 73,898, respectively.

When comparing residential growth to the population, the Raleigh-Cary metropolitan area in North Carolina had the most residential properties breaking ground. Raleigh-Cary issued the most building permits,145, for residential units in 2019. The population in this metro area has recently skyrocketed, increasing by 39% more residents in less than five years.

While certain Texas cities saw declines in the value of new construction, there seemed to be no slowing down for the number of new homes constructed in some regions of the Lone Star State. The Houston metropolitan area is becoming a construction boom town. As of July 2019, more than 36,000 building permits were issued for new residential units, the most of any metropolitan area in the country.

The Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington area wasn't too far behind, with 34,523 building permits issued as of July 2019. These metropolitan areas are likely seeing construction increase due to a spike in job growth. Between August of 2018 and August of 2019, the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington metro area saw a 3.1% increase in employment, more than twice the national rate of 1.4%.

New home construction

The seaside cities of Honolulu; Sebastian-Vero Beach, Florida; and Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, Florida saw the greatest increases in the average valuation of new single-family homes between 2018 and 2019. These changes could influence how much homeowners charge if they choose to rent out their properties.

While new homes aren't being built at equal rates across the country, cities with lower construction rates might be building more expensive homes. The Urban Honolulu, Hawaii, metropolitan area, for example, had the highest value per new construction in 2019, with the average value of a single-family home reaching $396,800. Numerous cities in Florida and California also saw high estimated values, the highest of which averaged over $391,000 per single-family home.

Link:
The South And West Lead The Way In Housing Construction - Forbes

The Charlotte, a 57-story apartment project in Jersey City, is expected to be complete by the first quarter of 2021.

JERSEY CITY, N.J. Roseland Residential Trust, a subsidiary of locally based REIT Mack-Cali Realty Corp. (NYSE: CLI), has received a $300 million loan for the construction of The Charlotte, a 57-story apartment tower on the fringe of New York City.

The Charlotte will be located at 25 Christopher Columbus Drive in Jersey City and feature 750 Class A apartments, 37 of which will be earmarked for affordable housing. In addition, Roseland Residential will construct a 36,000-square-foot elementary school on the site that will be deeded over to Jersey City upon completion. The Charlotte will also feature approximately 16,500 square feet of retail space and a public plaza.

Michael Sherman and Irene Lu of CBREs Midtown Manhattan office arranged the financing through an undisclosed lender on behalf of Roseland Residential Trust. The nonrecourse loan was structured with a five-year term and a one-year extension option.

The trophy quality of the asset, strength of sponsorship and prime location led to a highly competitive bid process for this loan at very attractive pricing, says Sherman. The project is a testament to the continuing growth of Jersey City, as evidenced by the strong partnership between the developer and the municipality.

Construction of the project is underway and is expected to be complete by the first quarter of 2021.

Mack-Calis stock price opened at $21.30 per share on Monday, Nov. 18, relatively unchanged from its price of $21.07 per share a year ago.

Taylor Williams

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Roseland Residential Receives $300M Construction Loan for 57-Story Apartment Building in Jersey City - REBusinessOnline

abigail.desvergnes

Boston.com Staff

November 20, 2019 10:45 am

Lower mortgage rates and a healthy job market have boosted the housing market and economy. For developers, its reportedly a good time to build.

And the stats show they are.

The Commerce Department reported Tuesday that US home-building rose 3.8 percent overall in October (single-family starts alone went up 2 percent), and the construction of apartment buildings rose 6.8 percent.

But what does this demand mean for buyers?

Bad news first. Affordability could be a problem, because despite the new construction, inventory is still low and home prices are climbing.

Here is the good news: There is usually less competition in the fall for those homes.

Here are 12 properties to explore at open houses this weekend from a two-bedroom Melrose home with beautiful woodwork for $469,900 to a five-bedroom beach house overlooking Scituate Harbor for $2,395,000.

Check them out:

$469,900

2 bedrooms, 1 full bath

1,187 square feet

0.15-acre lot

Open houses: Saturday, Nov. 23, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

***

$479,900

4 bedrooms, 2 full baths, 1 half bath

2,346 square feet

0.91-acre lot

Open house: Sunday, Nov. 24, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

***

$529,000

2 bedrooms, 2 full baths

1,260 square feet

Open houses: Saturday, Nov. 23, from noon to 1 p.m., and Sunday, Nov. 24, from 11 a.m. to noon.

***

$499,000

4 bedrooms, 2 full baths, 1 half bath

2,082 square feet

0.94-acre lot

Open house: Sunday, Nov. 24, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

$789,000

3 bedrooms, 3 full baths, 1 half bath

2,606 square feet

0.13-acre lot

Open house: Saturday, Nov. 23, from noon to 1:30 p.m.

***

$799,000

3 bedrooms, 2 full baths, 1 half bath

2,383 square feet

0.32-acre lot

Open houses: Saturday, Nov. 23, and Sunday, Nov. 24, from 1 to 3 p.m.

***

$942,625

2 bedrooms, 2 full baths, 1 half bath

2,330 square feet

Open houses: Saturday, Nov. 23, from 12:30 to 2 p.m., and Sunday, Nov. 24, from noon to 1:30 p.m.

***

$959,500

3 bedrooms, 2 full baths

1,388 square feet

Open house: Sunday, Nov. 24, from noon to 2 p.m.

$1,175,000

6 bedrooms, 3 full baths, 1 half bath

5,708 square feet

1.3-acre lot

Open house: Sunday, Nov. 24, from 1 to 3 p.m.

***

$1,195,000

3 bedrooms, 3 full baths, 1 half bath

4,043 square feet

0.48-acre lot

Open house: Saturday, Nov. 23, from 11 a.m. to noon.

***

$1,848,888

5 bedrooms, 5 full baths

3,950 square feet

0.16-acre lot

Open house: Sunday, Nov. 24, from 2 to 3 p.m.

***

$2,395,000

5 bedrooms, 2 baths, 1 half bath

2,098 square feet

0.67-acre lot

Open house: Sunday, Nov. 24, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Subscribe to the Globes free real estate newsletter our weekly digest on buying, selling, and design atpages.email.bostonglobe.com/AddressSignUp. Follow us onFacebook, Instagram, and Twitter@globehomes.

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12 must-see open houses in Greater Boston (Nov. 23-24) - Boston.com

Metro Phoenix's first no-car apartment complex is going up in Tempe, across from light rail.(Photo: Design by Opticos/Rendering by Hugo Render)

An apartment development with no parking for its expected 1,000 residents is planned across from a light-rail station in Tempe.

The $140 million development will have scooters, bicycles andsome ride-sharing cars. It alsohas plans to offer residents of the 636 apartments deals on light rail,buses andrides with Uber or Lyft.

Developers of the complex called Culdesac Tempe, which will be on 16 acres near Apache Boulevard and River Road, say it will be the first car-less apartments built in the U.S. It's scheduled to open to renters across from the Smith-Martin light-rail stop infall 2020.

We want our residents tosee life from their doorstep, not stuck behind a windshield, said Jeff Berens, who with Ryan Johnson founded the San Francisco-based firm Culdesac with $10 million in venture capital.

Culdesac is partnering with veteran developer Sunbelt Holdings led by John Graham to develop the apartments.

Metro Phoenix's first no-car apartment complex is going up in Tempe, across from light rail.(Photo: Culdesac Tempe)

"To our knowledge, this will be the first apartment complex built without parking for residents," said Graham. "It feels like the timing is right. The number of people I know who are carless now is amazing."

The development wouldn't be entirely parking-free. There wouldbe guestspaces on site for visitors and parking for the development's commercial retail.

Other apartment developments inthe United Statesand metro Phoenixare experimenting withlimited parking, and some with no parking are planned in Los Angeles and on the East Coast.

We are witnessing the first generation of people choosing not to own cars, Johnson said.

As part of Culdesacs development agreement with the city, Tempewaived its parking requirements.

The Development Review Commission will vote next month on a zoning map amendment and development plan review for the first phase of the project. The requestis expected to go to the City Council on Dec. 12, said Chad Weaver, community development director.

Weaver said developers are expected to pull building permits early next year after they close on the property.

LOVE OR HATE THE TRAINS:: Light rail boosts home values in metro Phoenix

Though the city has approved projects with reduced parking in the downtown area, this will be one of the first such projects outside of the citys core, he said.

He said staff hopes this will help alleviate traffic in the area.

Were happy folks are bringing us unique ideas and we hope that we can take more use of the transit that has been invested in and is right at their doorstep, he said.

The project falls within one of Tempe's opportunity zones, which could allow investors to take advantage of federal tax breaks.

Rents for the no-car apartments will be market rate at about $1,400 to $1,500, say the developers.

The average rent in Tempe is about $1,360, according to ABI Multifamily.

The developer thinks a big part of the draw for millennials will be saving money on transportation costs.

Metro Phoenix is in the midst of an apartment building boom. More than 3,000 other apartments are currently under construction or recently completedin Tempe, includingRiver at Eastline Village, a 56-unit affordable developmentacross the street from the Culdesac site.

Culdesac Tempe will also have a pool, park, separate dog park and gym.

There will be some parking at the sitefor the development's retail space that could include a grocery, coffee shop and co-working space.

Metro Phoenix's first car-free apartment development is going up in Tempe, across from light rail. (courtesy of Logan Hunt Films)(Photo: Culdesac Tempe)

Reach the reporter at Catherine.Reagor@arizonarepublic.comor 602-444-8040. Follow her on Twitter @Catherinereagor. Reach the reporter paulina.pineda@azcentral.com or 602-444-8130. Follower her on Twitter @paulinapineda22.

Support local journalism. Subscribe to azcentral today.

Read or Share this story: https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/tempe/2019/11/19/culdesac-tempe-apartment-complex-wont-offer-residential-parking/4191470002/

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Tempe apartments for renters without cars are in the works - AZCentral

Michael Schwartz November 20, 2019 2

Michael Hild is looking to unload a chunk of his Richmond real estate holdings. (BizSense file photos; rendering courtesy Tranzon Fox)

As he awaits trial on federal criminal charges and with prosecutors keeping his assets on lockdown, a chunk of the Richmond real estate holdings tied to local mortgage executive and developer Michael Hild are being put up for grabs.

Ten properties owned through LLCs tied to Hild and his wife on the citys Southside are scheduled for auction on Dec. 17, according to a release late Tuesday from auction firm Tranzon Fox.

The ownership entities Church Hill Ventures LLC, Kingfisher LLC, and Gardenia LLC sought and received permission from the federal government to sell the properties, according to Tranzon. Thats in accordance with a post-indictment restraining order the government put in place to preserve assets owned directly and indirectly by Hild while his case plays out.

Hild, 44, ran Chesterfield-based lender Live Well Financial until its collapse into bankruptcy this summer and was arrested in August on counts of securities fraud, mail fraud and bank fraud, related to an alleged reverse-mortgage bond scheme.

Several of the properties headed to auction were on the list of 29 properties the government said it would target for seizure if he was convicted, arguing that those properties constitute proceeds of Hilds fraudulent scheme.

The former SunTrust Bank building at 1518 Hull St. (BizSense file photo)

The properties up for grabs at auction include:

Most notable among them is the old bank building at 1518 Hull St. Hild apparently had conceptual drawings produced for the site, showing a new construction, five-story, 55-unit apartment building sitting behind the existing bank building, which would be converted into 14 additional apartments. Those designs convey with any sale at auction, and zoning is in place for such a project, Tranzon said.

Also within the group is the old Lighthouse Diner building at 1228 Hull St.; the old Mechanics and Merchants Bank building at 1129 Hull St., now used as an event space; and an old church at 1201 Decatur.

The former Lighthouse Diner building at 1228 Hull St. (BizSense file photo)

The list of properties up for auction notably does not include the buildings that house Hilds recently opened Dogtown Brewing Co. Hot Diggity Donuts and Butterbean Caf.

It also does not include the 4-acre assemblage anchored by the Siegels Supermarket building at 2005 Hull St. which was listed for sale earlier this year for $12 million and the subject of a pending rezoning request.

A live auction will be conducted Dec. 17 at the Westin Richmond at 6631 W. Broad St., beginning at 11 a.m. Bids can also be made online.

The properties will be auctioned off individually, but buyers can bid on multiple parcels.

The government claims Hilds alleged scheme illicitly netted $65 million from lenders by fraudulently inflating the value of Live Wells portfolio of complex reverse-mortgage bonds to induce lenders to loan the company tens of millions of dollars more than they normally would have.

Hild has pleaded not guilty and remains free on a $500,000 bond. His only comment publicly since his arrest last month has been through his attorneys, who stated every business failure is not a corporate crime.

A trial is set for October 2020.

He also faces separate civil charges from the Securities and Exchange Commission of fraud and violations of federal securities laws. Hes due to respond to those claims on Nov. 29.

Also charged in both cases is Live Wells former CFO Eric Rohr and Executive Vice President Darren Stumberger. They are cooperating with authorities and have pleaded guilty in the criminal case, and consented to partial judgements on the civil matter.

Hilds wife Laura Dyer Hild is not a party to any of the government legal actions.

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Portion of Hild's Manchester-area holdings headed to auction - RichmondBizSense

The same developer that revitalized the White Furniture Building in Mebane is now working to create a new residential apartment complex and commercial space at the longtime Granite Finishing Mill manufacturing plant in Haw River.

The Lofts on Haw River, as the complex is to be named, will feature 175 apartments ranging in size from just under 650 square feet up to 1,900 square feet. There will also be a restaurant onsite, as well as a coffee shop, as part of a total of 7,800 square feet in commercial space. The project began in December of 2018 with the initial phase of construction.

In a recent tour of the construction project, Marques Miller, a sales and marketing representative with property management firm Trivest McNeil, explained that the developers are looking to begin renting the first units by the end of December and early January, with the project coming to completion around March.

Theres a lot of floor plans, Miller said. No units have not yet been reserved, because the pricing hasnt been locked in officially. Square footage is going to start at 644 square feet, and go up to 1,900 square feet, with most of the units having amazing river views.

This is definitely our first time taking on a project with commercial space, Miller added, indicating that the onsite restaurant and coffee shop will have its own parking area. There will be additional square footage that could become a second restaurant on the property at some point in the future.

Along with the wide range of floor plans overlooking Haw River, there will be river access with a walkway that goes down to Haw River and back up to the apartment complex. Some of the upper-floor units will offer not only rooftop access, but also decks with spectacular views of the river.

When there are not construction sounds, you can hear the water. Its real pleasant, Miller said. This property stands out because of its relationship to the river.

Granite Mill began in the 1840s along the Haw River as a cotton mill. It eventually grew as time went on and become a prominent fabrics manufacturing company, Granite Finishing Mill. According to D3 Developments website (http://www.d3-development.com/granitemill/), the Granite Finishing Mill was one of the largest producers of corduroy during the mid-twentieth century.

It was one of Alamance Countys largest manufacturers, Miller explained. In its prime, this place employed approximately 2,000 people. The Town of Haw River now is about 2,500 people. So it was a huge part of the community.

Miller informed us that the Granite Mill facility at one time comprised of 22 buildings, taking up approximately 1.3 million square feet. Some of those original buildings, which include units across the street as well as the current Haw River recycling plant, are not part of the apartment complex reconstruction contract. Granite Finishing Mill shut down for good in the 1990s and was used for years as a storage facility for another company before being vacated.

A total of 12 buildings within the Granite Mill complex are being refurbished by D3 Development, a Durham-based firm, for the 175 apartments - all on the north side of East Main Street.

D3 Development, which oversaw the successful transition of White Furniture from an abandoned historic property into a thriving residential community, received a $5 million loan from the Town of Haw River as part of a public-private partnership between the developer and the community to modernize and repurpose the old mill.

The developer has also received State of North Carolina Mill Credits, a HUD-insured 221(d)(4) construction and permanent loan, as well as a Tax Credit Bridge Loan, as part of the $44.2 million project to revitalize the long-abandoned series of buildings along the Haw River on Main Street. Approximately $36.3 million of the project are qualified rehabilitation expenses, according to D3 Developments website.

As was the case with the Lofts at White Furniture, there are painstaking efforts being made to bring the various apartment buildings up to modern living standards, while also preserving as much of the original structure.

There are many areas in the various buildings where the original hardwood flooring remains. Much of the original exterior - made largely of brick and stone - still stands. Numerous steel support poles and beams are still in place. Many of the windows overlooking the river have been in place for decades.

Were really trying to preserve the history of what this place brought to Haw River, and bring it back, Miller said. You can see the big smokestack - that will stay. The pool will be right beside it, and the gym will be right in front of it. Were trying to keep as much of the original history.

As part of receiving the various state and federal tax credits for the project, Granite Mill was approved to be listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Getting approved on the National Register of Historic Places meant that the project had to meet certain specific sets of requirements beyond the basic building codes to receive Certificates of Occupancy and allow renters to begin inhabiting buildings. Extra efforts had to be made to avoid destroying certain historical elements of the property.

It is going to be historically preserved on the National Registry. So meeting that criteria comes with its own challenges, Miller said.

Despite all the historical preservation, the units will be outfitted with modern utilities. The units - some of which will be two stories - will all have washers and dryers in them. There will also be Wifi throughout the various buildings, along with many other attractive onsite amenities.

There will be a large community area, and there will be a large business center. There will be a fitness center and a yoga center, Miller said.

With so much growth taking place in eastern Alamance County over the past few years, the Lofts at Haw River project seems to be a perfect union of meeting a local need while also preserving a local treasure.

Nobody wanted to see the Granite Mill complex fall apart beside the river on such prime real estate. But somebody had to figure out how to repurpose the 12-plus acre property. The Lofts on Haw River will allow this historic piece of Alamance County history to live and breathe again, while also providing another vital resource to accommodate the housing needs of a rapidly-growing area.

I think you see that a lot of growth is happening in Durham, Chapel Hill, and Raleigh. And theres a lot of growth in the Greensboro and Winston-Salem areas, which is bringing a lot of growth to the middle areas - Burlington, Mebane, Haw River. Elon is growing a lot. Mebane is growing at a huge rate - really good growth. Were hoping to help Haw Rivers economy, and surrounding areas, Miller said.

Originally posted here:
Lofts on Haw River rapidly taking shape | Business - Mebane Enterprise

Photo: Unsplash

Wondering what buildings are coming down or going up in Chicago? Local building permit data can shine a light on what's under construction near you.

In the past week, the city issued 223 building permits, according to data from BuildZoom, a platform that helps homeowners and businesses with new construction and remodels.

Eight of those permits were for new building construction, five were for demolition projects and the remainder were for repairs and renovations.

Read on for a selection of the most noteworthy new permits.

Applicant Skiffington David Patrick received a permit for new construction of a structure at 401 N. Michigan Ave.

Applicant R Carlson & Sons Inc. was issued a permit for new construction of a structure at 631 N. La Salle Drive.In the permit, the work scope is described as: "Disconnect existing u/g conduit and wiring to fuel management and leak detection systems including dispensers and pumps. Run new u/g conduit from building to new fueling dispensers sub motors and reconnect to existing circuits and leak detection and intercom systems. Also run new u/g pipe and wire to canopy lighting and reconnect to existing lighting circuits."

Contractor Kyle Kocinski Chicago Special Events Managem received a permit for new construction of a structure at 600 W. Montrose Drive.

Applicant Chicago Heat & Air Inc. was issued a permit for new construction of a structure at 2254 W. Roscoe St. The work is described as: "Erect a three-story, two-unit apartment building with basement and detached two-car garage with roof deck access stairs per plans."

Contractor Power Construction Company LLC was issued a permit for new construction of a structure at 1520 W. Harrison St. The work is described as: "Revision to tower crane to move from originally approved location and increase the jib length. No change to model and foundation type."

Contractor Hartmann Electric Company Inc. received a permit for repair/renovation of a structure at 11601 W. Touhy Ave. The work is described as: "Extend existing lighting and power circuits to new configuration for Alitalia Airlines office in terminal five."

Contractor Four Star Electric Inc. received a permit for repair/renovation of a structure at 900 W. North Ave. The permit defines the project's work scope as: "Replace an existing sign with new sign using existing power."

Contractor D&J Electric Inc. was issued a permit for repair/renovation of a structure at 5625 N. Kilbourn Ave. The permit defines the project's work scope as: "Service replacement 120/240v 200a required with new solar work."

Applicant VP Mechanical was issued a permit for repair/renovation of a structure at 155 N. Michigan Ave. In the permit, the work scope is described as: "Revision to permit #100814120 to change GC to HJ Pokorny Construction LLC and HVAC contractor VP Mechanical."

Applicant Triad Associates Inc. received a permit for repair/renovation of a structure at 3542 S. Washtenaw Ave. In the permit, the work scope is described as: "Replace [six] antennas with new tech antennas. Install [one] new GPS antenna. Install [two] new cabinets."

This story was created automatically using local building data from BuildZoom, then reviewed and augmented by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing.

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Zooming in: A look at the construction projects in your Chicago neighborhood - Yahoo News

Construction of the two buildings on either side of Doheny Hall is scheduled to be completed before Fall 2020 move in.

The new building intended for first year students will look similar to Del Rey North and South: each rooms layout will include built in closet space, but no sink, according to Beth Crowell, associate director for resident services. The building will also provide students with a communal kitchen and other shared spaces, as well as a number of both single-use and gender neutral restrooms on each floor.

While the building being constructed on the former site of Huesman Residence Hall will look similar to the Del Reys, the building being constructed on the former site of Sullivan Residence Hall will be the first of its kind on campus. The second building will be a mix of apartment and pod-style living and will house over 300 continuing students, according to Crowell.

Pod style living is made up of a series of interconnected double or single rooms that share a living room, kitchen and bathrooms with separate stalls. Each pod will house 18-19 students, as previously reported by the Loyolan.

Crowell stated that the pod-style living will be especially beneficial to the Living Learning and Theme communities on campus. Living Learning Communities are programs where students who take one or more courses together also live together, according to the LMU website. Living Learning Communities available on campus include Honors Living Learning Community, Life Science Early Awareness Program (LEAP) and Sustainable Living Experience (SLE).

We are really excited that we were able to take student feedback and incorporate their ideas into the design of the buildings, said Crowell. For the first time single rooms in apartments will be available and our current number of single rooms on campus will more than double. Each building will have a number of common spaces including large event spaces and smaller areas where students can study or talk on the phone outside of their room.

The buildings are currently in the framing stage of construction, according to Crowell. The walls used during this stage were made off-site to decrease the amount of noise pollution. However, some of the residents in Doheny are still affected by the construction.

Shadron Nash, a freshman biology major, said that the dust and noise from the construction are what affects him the most as a Doheny resident.

All of the [Doheny] residents dont like having to deal with the construction but its what we ended up with, so we just deal with it regardless, said Nash. I wouldnt say its the best living arrangement but it could be worse a little extra noise and dirt isnt gonna kill us.

Construction is scheduled to be finished before Fall 2020 move-in, according to Crowell.

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Construction in East Quad is in beginning stages | News - Los Angeles Loyolan

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Building permits for residential construction surged in October from a year earlier to the highest level since May 2007, suggesting the housing pipeline is heating up even as winter sets in.

Permits leapt 14.1% from a year earlier to a seasonally adjusted 1.46 million, the Commerce Department said Tuesday. That figure was better than the 1.385 million Bloomberg consensus estimate. Housing starts also rose in October, up 8.5% from a year earlier to 1.314 million. That was a bit shy of the 1.320 million economists expected. Both single- and multi-family starts rose.

While the indicators tend to be a volatile ones, permits were boosted by a jump in the multi-family sector, where the 12-month average climbed to a 32-year high, notes Ian Shepherdson, chief economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics. This, he said, is likely in response to rock-bottom vacancy rates on rental properties.

Given the lag between securing a building permit and completing construction, the vacancy rate will remain under pressure for at least another year, Shepherdson said.

It might be no surprise, then, that shares of real-estate investment trusts have posted big gains over the past 12 months. Leading the pack is Sun Communities (ticker: SUI), up 58%. Sun owns manufactured housing-communities.

A few REITs, though, have pared gains this month. Essex Property Trust (ESS), for example, has fallen 3.1% since the start of November, paring its 12-month gain to 24%. The company owns apartments on the West Coast, where the rise in October building permits was particularly strong.

Write to Lisa Beilfuss at lisa.beilfuss@wsj.com

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Finding an Apartment to Rent Is Hard. Here Come the Builders. - Barron's

In the past few months, Apple, Google and Facebook announced multibillion-dollar investments in housing. Gov. Gavin Newsom has made housing a top priority of his administration, committing an unprecedented $1.75 billion to spur housing development. The state legislature has passed a record-breaking number of housing bills in the past two years. And last week, Newsom called a meeting of the states top business leaders and asked them to do even more.

The urgency public and private sector leaders are bringing to housing reflects an increasingly dire reality statewide. In the Bay Area alone, tens of thousands of individuals are cycling into homelessness annually, and there are 175,000 more on the brink of homelessness. Addressing this need would require construction of 188,000 new units of affordable housing by 2023 at a cost of $94 billion.

If we are to upend the status quo, we must do more than simply sustain our current momentum. We must engage on this issue in a fundamentally new and collaborative way. We see four primary levers.

First, density and zoning. Onerous land-use requirements make it nearly impossible to identify parcels for multi-family housing or move affordable projects forward at the scale required. For example, 94% of all developable land in San Jose and 62% in San Francisco is zoned only for single-family housing. We need more flexible zoning with much greater density near services, transit corridors and surrounding urban areas.

Our second challenge is time. It can take five to seven years from project inception to completion. This is too long given our immediate housing needs, and makes housing more expensive, since construction costs escalate at over 5% each year. Entitlements for affordable-housing projects need to take months, not years, and we need our elected officials to address these inefficiencies and regulatory hurdles for affordable housing.

Third, we must reduce the cost of construction. We have serious work to do to make up for decades of minimal innovation in the industry and to address our shortage of skilled construction workers. Even now, as construction innovations begin to advance, they are hindered by risk-averse construction lenders and government funders who are reluctant to embrace new approaches like modular housing.

Fourth, we need to be more strategic in our deployment of capital, so were not only building more housing, but doing so as cost effectively as possible. Investments provided by business and philanthropic leaders at low or no cost can allow developers to be more nimble in acquiring land and buildings and utilize new cost-saving construction technologies. While long-term public-sector funding will always be needed to ensure permanent housing affordability, upfront flexible investments by the private sector can drive change and allow public dollars to go further.

To address each, we need to fundamentally change the way we work together to provide housing. Each sector philanthropic, private and public needs to leverage its unique strengths to fill the specific gaps that others cant. This may seem daunting, but there are successful models at work.

The city of San Francisco is working with nonprofit housing developers and the San Francisco Housing Accelerator Fund, a lender that leverages private and philanthropic capital to buy apartment buildings and preserve their affordability. And, in partnership with Tipping Point Community, the Accelerator Fund leverages philanthropic capital to build new permanent housing for people experiencing homelessness, bending development cost and time curves in a way the public sector cant do alone.

In the South Bay, cities and counties are working with Destination: Home as part of a collective impact strategy to implement Measure A, a 2016 ballot measure generating $950 million for deeply affordable housing. These partnerships have resulted in a pipeline of 21 new housing developments for homeless and vulnerable residents.

And working across city and county boundaries is imperative. Industry leaders recently created All Home, a nonprofit organization, with the specific intent of working regionally with cross-sector stakeholders to create transformative change.

We need innovation and new kinds of partnerships across sectors and geographies to deliver solutions that match the challenge. Solutions are within our grasp, and tackling this crisis will require all of our grit, humility, and creativity. Californias future depends on our ability to work together to create change.

Rebecca Foster is CEO of San Francisco Housing Accelerator Fund; Jennifer Loving is CEO of Destination: Home; Tomiquia Moss is CEO of All Home.

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It takes a village to solve Bay Areas housing crisis - San Francisco Chronicle