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The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is illegally foisting union activists onto non-unionized businesses, through an unlawful rule allowing agents from organized labor to participate, as of right, in OSHA health and safety inspections.

James S. Lee., CRE, co-founder and senior principal, Kensington Realty Advisors, Chicago, spoke today at MIPIM Japan 2016 in Osaka. MIPIM Japan is Asia’s largest international real estate conference. He represented The Counselors of Real Estate professional association where he is the 2016 Chair of the Board. Two other Counselors of Real Estate, Hiroyuki Isobe, CRE, and Masayuki Yoshimura, CRE, also spoke at MIPIM Japan.

Growing 43 percent year over year, the U.S. saw 2,051 megawatts (MW) of solar photovoltaic (PV) installed in the second quarter of 2016. According to GTM Research and the Solar Energy Industries Association’s (SEIA) latest U.S. Solar Market Insight report, this marks the eleventh consecutive quarter in which more than a gigawatt (GW) of PV was installed.

The National Association of the Remodeling Industry (NARI) announced a big change with the launch of its new branding and industry-wide tagline. Much more than a logo update, rebranding has created a system of expression that galvanizes NARI’s 6,000 member-companies, cements the value of NARI’s programs and services and telegraphs externally to consumers a brand promise that emboldens the value of remodelers to homeowners and communities.

Mortgage applications increased 0.9 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association's (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending September 2, 2016.

Builds include first home in a Habitat development for military veterans in Seattle, two homes funded through recycling initiatives. Delta Air Lines employees from across the country will build or renovate affordable, single family homes in partnership with Habitat for Humanity International this fall.

Over the last two weeks, the Public Justice Center and others in the PORT3* coalition have been negotiating with Sagamore Development to ensure that Baltimore City’s proposed $660 million investment in the Port Covington development includes good jobs and affordable housing for Baltimore residents. We have insisted that the deal not hurt school funding, and that both the developer and the City be held to the highest standards of transparency and accountability

GRESB, the leading data provider for environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance of real assets, today released the results of the 2016 GRESB Real Estate, Developer and Debt assessments. The new data shows that real estate companies and funds are improving across all aspects of ESG performance, including a 1.2 percent reduction in energy consumption, 2 percent reduction in GHG emissions and close to 1 percent reduction in water use and are putting greater focus on occupant health and well-being

The Center for Green Schools at the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), in partnership with Second Nature, announced that Arizona State University and Johnson County Community College have been selected to receive the seventh annual Climate Leadership Awards.

U.S. home builders today completed four days of talks with Chilean government, trade and industry officials that are geared toward increasing exports of softwood lumber and other wood products to America.

In accordance with the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act, HUD published a Notice in the Sept. 2, 2016, Federal Register identifying Federal buildings and other real property HUD has reviewed for suitability for use to assist the homeless. The properties were reviewed using information provided to HUD by Federal landholding agencies or by GSA regarding their inventories of excess or surplus property. The list includes buildings and properties in 29 states and Puerto Rico.

Public hearings for WSSC’s Proposed Capital Improvements Project Budget (CIP) for Fiscal Years 2018 – 2023 will be held on September 7 and 8, respectively in Montgomery and Prince George’s counties

Builder confidence in the single-family 55+ housing market remains in positive territory for the first quarter of 2015, according to the National Association of Home Builders’ (NAHB) 55+ Housing Market Index (HMI) released today. Compared to the previous quarter, the single-family index edged down slightly by one point to 58, which is the fourth consecutive quarter above 50.

Industry Officials Caution that Worker Shortages Could Undermine Sector’s Recovery and Stall Broader Economic Growth without Measures to Recruit and Train New Generation of Craft Workers for the Industry

Private-Sector Outlays Rise 1.0 Percent for the Month While Public Sector Investments in Infrastructure, Other Construction Fall 3.1 Percent as New Survey Finds Most Firms Having Hard Time Finding Craft Workers

Consumers Energy is assisting the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on work taking place at Tippy Dam this week to protect salmon, lake trout and other fish species in the Great Lakes. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service personnel are applying lampricides to the Manistee River at Tippy Dam to control sea lamprey larvae from the hydro facility downstream to Lake Michigan, a distance of 29 miles.

The Modular Building Institute’s (MBI) US and Canadian Foundations are pleased to announce two recipients of educational scholarships in 2016. Annually, the foundations provide $5,000 in scholarships to employees of MBI member companies or employee spouses, children, or grandchildren. The US Foundation provides one $2,500 scholarship and the Canadian Foundation provides one $2,500 scholarship. Applicants apply directly to the foundations and must be enrolled or enrolling in two- or four-year schools

The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) today released its mid-year ranking of commercial and multifamily mortgage servicers' volume as of June 30, 2016.  At the top of the list is Wells Fargo Bank N.A. with $502.2 billion in U.S. master and primary servicing, followed by PNC Real Estate/Midland Loan Services with $499.1 billion, Berkadia Commercial Mortgage LLC with $220.6 billion, KeyBank N.A. with $195.4 billion, and CBRE Loan Services with $108.3 billion.

Delinquency rates for commercial and multifamily mortgage loans remained low in the second quarter of 2016, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's (MBA) Commercial/Multifamily Delinquency Report.