Yearly Archives: 2017

Next-generation concentrating solar power (CSP) plants require high-temperature fluids, like molten salts, in the range of 550-750 degrees Celsius to store heat and generate electricity. At those high temperatures, however, the molten salts eat away at common alloys used in the heat exchangers, piping, and storage vessels of CSP systems.

U.S. Housing and Urban Development today announced HUD will speed federal disaster assistance to the U.S. Virgin Islands and provide support to homeowners and low-income renters forced from their homes due to Hurricane Irma. Last week, President Trump issued a major disaster declaration for St. John and St. Thomas Islands. The President’s declaration allows HUD to offer foreclosure relief and other assistance to certain families living in this county.

Members of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) are celebrating Professional Women in Building (PWB) Week Sept. 18 – 22. The goals of PWB Week are to highlight the many contributions women make to the residential construction industry and offer an opportunity for PWB members to share the value of council membership

Capital Impact Partners announced today that it provided $75 million in project financing during the second quarter of 2017. This represents the largest quarterly loan volume in the company’s history as it worked to support increased access to health care, education, affordable housing, and healthy food around the United States.

Builder confidence in the market for newly-built single-family homes fell three points to a level of 64 in September from a downwardly revised August reading of 67 on the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI).

The Santa Fe Association of REALTORS® is hosting a Multi-Family Housing Conference on Thursday - September 28, 2017, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Santa Fe Community Convention Center. The event is devoted to raising awareness of multi-family housing by providing a forum for key stakeholders to explore opportunities to promote, encourage and grow workforce housing in our region.

Despite being in the prime years to buy their first home, an overwhelming majority of millennials with student debt currently do not own a home and believe this debt is to blame for what they typically expect to be a seven-year delay from buying

AirGMS is a Vancouver startup that is making life a lot easier for a new generation of Airbnb hosts. By differentiating itself from the crowd with a number of exclusive features - such as native autoresponders - AirGMS is proving to be a game changer for vacation property managers, whether they have hundreds of properties or just a handful.

The U.S. Senate today confirmed President Trump’s nomination of Pamela Patenaude to serve as Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). HUD Secretary Ben Carson welcomed the Senate’s action and said it comes at a critical time as the Department prepares to support the long-term recovery following Hurricanes Harvey and Irma.

The Boulder Group, a net leased investment brokerage firm, has completed the sale of a single tenant Internal Revenue Service (IRS) office building located at 14479 S. John Humphrey Drive in Orland Park, IL for $3,250,000.

There is still time to learn about an effort by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to put energy performance on the lending table. The National Institute of Building Sciences Council on Finance, Insurance and Real Estate (CFIRE) will host a webinar to discuss the energy performance of buildings.

As an Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management Subcommittee hearing yesterday on 21st Century Infrastructure quickly became chiefly devoted to the impacts of recent hurricanes, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) raised the increasing importance of finding ways to improve investments in pre-disaster infrastructure

In a letter today to Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Ginnie Mae outlines its actions to curb VA refinance speeds and aggressive marketing by some VA approved lenders. As Ginnie Mae notes in its letter, rapid refinance and loan churning was recognized as a problem in its VA portfolio last year. This led to Ginnie Mae’s initial measures to change its program rules to address the issue. These initial measures were successful in stopping these practices with many lenders.

Although the fiscal year 2018 D.C. Appropriations bill passed by the House today contains five anti-home-rule riders, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) said she believes she will be able to keep most of them out of the final spending bill, which must be passed by December 8. The Senate version of the fiscal year 2018 D.C. Appropriations bill has not been introduced, but even under Republican control the last two fiscal years, the bill has contained zero anti-home-rule riders

The Department of the Interior announced today that the Bureau of Reclamation is awarding a construction contract of almost $62 million for part of the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project in New Mexico to increase the supply of clean drinking water to surrounding communities.

Following work to identify and mark all underground utilities, WSSC will begin to mobilize heavy equipment along US 29 (Colesville Road) in Silver Spring on Monday, September 18, weather permitting. Crews will begin excavating near the intersection of MD 97 (Georgia Avenue) and Colesville Road, moving north towards I-495 (Capital Beltway).

Statement from the National Multifamily Housing Council (NMHC) and National Apartment Association (NAA) following Pam Patenaude’s confirmation as Deputy Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)

The U.S. Senate today approved the nomination of Pam Patenaude as deputy secretary at the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Following is a statement from NAR President William E. Brown on the vote

State governments, in partnership with cities and other local jurisdictions, can and should do more to promote housing development and choice through smarter local land use policies and incentives, according to a new Urban Land Institute (ULI) report, Yes in My Backyard.