COVERAGE INFORMATION:
California Department of Real Estate (DRE) NEWS CLIPS service coverage:
Monday through Friday (except state holidays) each week includes electronic format articles retrieved from newspapers or news services that report real estate related news in California and some national services. Coverage is for California newspapers that are available electronically via the Internet - and any significant related breaking news.
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Copyright © , California Department of Real Estate
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Thursday, May 14, 2026
Top Stories
California Housing Affordability Hits Four-Year High In Q1 2026
CZARINNA ANDRES, National Mortgage Professional
Housing affordability in California climbed to its highest level in four years in the first quarter of 2026, as lower mortgage rates and declining home prices helped more buyers qualify in a still-challenging market. Despite the improvement, California remains significantly less affordable than the rest of the country.
Pending Home Sales Jump 10% From a Year Ago to Highest Level Since 2022
DANA ANDERSON, Redfin News
U.S. pending homes sales jumped 9.6% year over year to their highest level since September 2022, on a seasonally adjusted basis. Pending sales are rising in every major U.S. metro except three (Houston, Detroit and Seattle). Mortgage-purchase applications are up 4% week over week.
National News
A new home gains a 10-year cost edge over resale: Realtor.com
HousingWire (Subscription)
Newly built homes carry a median list price premium of about $60,000 over existing homes nationally, but lower energy and major-system costs give new-home buyers an average $25,335 advantage in total cost of ownership over the first 10 years, according to a Realtor.com analysis using Pearl SCORE data.
Selling With One Agent On Both Sides Cost Home Sellers $1.49 Billion Over Three Years
TREH MAHNERTZ, Zillow Research
Home sellers in same-agent dual agency transactions — where one agent represented both buyer and seller — lost a combined $1.49 billion over three years, according to a new Zillow analysis. The price penalties from dual agency and off-MLS listings have appeared in every year Zillow has analyzed, showing a consistent pattern of harm.
Taylor Swift, lawsuits and quirky exemptions: How empty homes tax works in other cities
ROXANA POPESCU, PHILLIP MOLNAR San Diego Union-Tribune (Subscription)
If Measure A passes on June 2, San Diego would join a group of cities in the U.S., Canada and abroad that tax second homes or properties that are unoccupied for most of the year. In other cities where similar measures are in place, there are variations in exemptions, tax rates, enforcement and where the revenue is allocated. But a general trend is that they aim to generate funding for low-income renters and programs for homeless people, and they aim to add to the housing supply by encouraging owners of unoccupied properties to rent them or sell them.
California News
San Diego no longer among the most expensive rental markets. It’s not even in the top 10
PHILLIP MOLNAR, San Diego Union-Tribune (Subscription)
There was a time, not that long ago, when San Diego was one of the most expensive rental markets in the nation. Not anymore. San Diego now ranks No. 12 as the priciest rental market in the U.S., said the April report from real estate website Zumper. That’s the lowest it has been on the list since it started in 2020.
San Jose historic building lands money it needs to convert to housing
GEORGE AVALOS, San Jose Mercury News (Subscription)
The owner of a downtown San Jose tower has obtained the money that’s needed to convert the iconic high-rise from office spaces to housing units. The conversion is expected to produce 109 rental apartments, a public filing by San Jose’s housing agency shows.
Industry News
Homie takes ‘conspiracy’ argument to appeals court
DAVE GALLAGHER, Real Estate News
A panel of appellate judges peppered attorneys with questions about a key real estate case this week in Denver. The court will be deciding whether the actions of real estate agents constituted a conspiracy that involved major brokerages and the National Association of Realtors. Originally filed in August 2024, the case was dismissed by the U.S. District Court in Utah a year later but appealed to the Tenth Circuit, where oral arguments were made earlier this week.
Real Estate Technology
CRE AI Adoption Surges, But Trust Gap Limits Use In Deal Decisions
National Mortgage Professional
A new study from First American Data & Analytics and DealGround shows artificial intelligence is rapidly becoming part of daily workflows across commercial real estate, but most professionals still stop short of trusting it with actual deal decisions. The findings point to a clear shift: AI has moved beyond experimentation and into regular use, but remains largely a support tool rather than a decision-maker.
Property News
SF Decorator Showcase home in Pac Heights lists for first time since 1960s
CHRIS MALONE MENDEZ, The Real Deal (Subscription)
A century-old Pacific Heights mansion with ties to one of San Francisco’s best-known preservation architects is heading to market after more than 60 years in the same family. The Queen Anne-style home at 2315 Broadway, which dates to around 1900 and serves as this year’s San Francisco Decorator Showcase property, is hitting the market for $25 million.
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