New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has signed legislation to expand property tax exemptions for seniors to up to 65% of their home’s assessed value, raising the ceiling for the first time in decades from the previous 50% cap.

“No New York senior should lose their home because they can no longer afford their property taxes,” Hochul said in a statement. “By signing this legislation, we are working to make New York more affordable for our seniors on fixed incomes and empowering them to age in place, at home, in the communities they know and love.”

Under the new law, S5175A/A3698A, localities now have the option to offer exemptions of up to 65% for seniors who fall below the maximum income eligibility thresholds set at the local level. State estimates suggest that increasing the exemption could save the average senior about $300 annually.

Greg Olsen, acting director of the New York State Office for the Aging, noted that more than 1.8 million older adults in New York own their homes, and he said that “property taxes, especially for those on fixed incomes, can often be difficult to afford.”

The bill was approved in the New York State Senate in June. Effective immediately, the legislation will apply to taxable years beginning on and after Jan. 1, 2026.

According to reporting from Realtor.com, besides New York, 14 other states and the District of Columbia offer some form of property tax exemptions for older homeowners. These include Alabama, Alaska, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, Nebraska, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, Texas and Washington.

But the type of relief varies widely by state.

New York provides an exemption that reduces the portion of a home’s value that is taxed. Other states exempt only the state-level portion of the tax bill, while some exclude a certain dollar amount — such as the first $150,000 of assessed value.

Others freeze tax bills to protect seniors from increases, offer credits to reduce the amount owed or allow tax deferrals in exchange for a lien on the property.

Budget pressures can put these programs at risk. For example, in Colorado — where the budget deficit reached $1.2 billion in 2024 — state legislators were urged in an open letter to preserve a property tax exemption for older adults and disabled veterans despite fiscal constraints.

Melbourne has stolen No.1 spot in the Australian top 20 sales list for 2025 with a house that sold for more than $131m — highest in the country ever!

“Melbourne has provided the highest transaction in 2025, which is the first time this has occurred, ” says the director of leading prestige property valuers and author of the Dyson Austen Top 20 Prestige Residential Survey Simon Feilich.

But it’s not just top spot for the year.

Sources have confirmed to News Corp exclusively that the sale of Coonac in Toorak in February was in the $131m-$150m range, meaning it’s the highest house price in Australia of all time, beating last year’s winner, Elaine in Sydney’s Point Piper at $130m, and UIG Lodge, also in Point Piper, in late 2022.

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“It’s the most significant sale in Australian residential history, and there’s more coming,” the source said.

The total value of the top 20 sales this year is more than $1.1bn, 10 per cent up on last year.

Feilich, notes the entry level to the exclusive list is higher this year — starting at $42m rather than $30m.

Not only has Melbourne robbed Sydney of top spot this year, it’s also secured the third top sale at $80m-plus and the 10th, too, at $50m.

And the man said to have had a hand in those three sales, Ross Savas of Kay & Burton, is rumoured to have sold other Melbourne trophy homes in the $50m-$100m range, off-market, that are yet to come to light.

While not able to comment about specific sales, Savas told News Corp exclusively: “People from Sydney and Brisbane are investing in Melbourne because they see terrific value compared to other states,” he said.

“Trophy home properties are being snapped up by local and international buyers as once-in-a-lifetime opportunities as their generational homes.

“The rich are getting richer on a global basis, people are becoming multi-billionairees overnight … who would have ever thought Elon Musk would be worth $500bn!”

Back in Sydney, Ray White Double Bay principal Elliott Placks, who made five of the top sales and was buyer’s agent on another, says he’s not surprised about the rise of the southern capital.

“There’s a lot of wealth in Melbourne,” he said.

But Placks said the Sydney trophy home market remained robust with a deep pool of buyers.

“I’m aware of at least 15 buyers with budgets of more than $50m to spend on luxury properties,” he said.

Forbes agent Ken Jacobs, who made two of the top sales including the top Sydney sale of $82.5m, said demand exceeds availability. “I’ve had several unsolicited offers on homes that aren’t on the market that would have broken the current record,” Jacob says.

“They say, ‘Do you think they’d sell.”

“So I call the owner up and while they agree it’s a good offer, they say ‘where would I go’?”

Michael Pallier, of Sotheby’s, who made four of the top deals, said he’s personally made $1bn in sales.

Brad Pillinger, of Pillinger, appears in the top 10 again, as he has every year for 31 years.

“The top end market has been robust and there has been some good activity at $50m-plus,” he said.

“Last year I had a number of sales of $80m, including the [then] Aussie record $130m, it feels like some of those types of sales are about to happen again in the near future.”

Atlas principal Michael Coombs has two North Shore homes in the top 20, including 3 Kirkoswald Ave, Mosman which broke the region’s record at $50m.

His colleague Adrian Bridges shared the listing.

“The lack of trophy home sales in Mosman is just due to scarcity,” Bridges said.

“When available, these homes get snapped up quickly.”

THE 2025 TOP 20 HOME SALES AROUND AUSTRALIA

1. Coonac, Clendon Rd, Toorak, $131m-$150m

Former Essendon Football Club boss Paul Little and his Melbourne University chancellor wife Jane Hansen sold their Clendon Rd Italianate mansion on a hectare with a pool and tennis court in February.

Billionaire Dennis Bastas denied he was the buyer.

The exact price for the off-market sale, via Kay & Burton’s Ross Savas and Gerald Delany, won’t be known until settlement, which is soon — the end of January or the start of February.

Settlement had been delayed because Little and Hansen have been renovating their next home, spending millions on a a historic Italianate manor in South Yarra built in 1885 that they purchased in 2019 for $19.5m.

They had paid $14.5m for the Toorak home in 2002, bought from Spotless managing director Brian Blythe. Little and Hansen had done a major restoration of the 20-room mansion, originally built in 1867 for pioneer pastoralist Robert Ronald.

2. 14 Tivoli Ave, Rose Bay, $82.5m

A Rose Bay home sold for $82.5m, sources confirmed in late October, the top Sydney residential property sale of the year.

The waterfront on a 1138sq m block had been for sale for years, with multiple sources telling the Wentworth Courier in November 2023 that the vendor, Sicilian-born property developer Orazio Cambuglia, wanted well above $100m.

Some said the owners of the property – consisting of three separate residences with a total of eight bedrooms, 10 bathrooms and a four-car garage to house parents and children – wanted as much as $130m (which would have matched the then national house price record for Elaine).

But the most recent guide via its sales agents, Ken Jacobs and Hui Xu of Forbes, was $85m in April.

3. Lansell Rd, Toorak, $80m+

This luxury home was bought by Jack Gance, one of the founders of Chemist Warehouse, in November.

The double allotment on Lansell Rd was listed for sale by Andy Zhang, who heads development firm V-Leader.

The deal was brokered by Kay & Burton’s Ross Savas and Nick Kenyon, who both declined to confirm the buyer’s name or price. However, industry sources across Toorak noted Gance as the buyer.

Gance was among those to make vast amounts of money from the more than $30bn merger of Chemist Warehouse with Sigma Healthcare earlier this year. The property settles in mid-January.

4. Crown Tower penthouse, Sub $80m

James Packer adviser Lawrence Myers pounced on the 849sq m six-bedroom, eight-bathroom residence on levels 81 and 82 of the Crown casino tower in Barangaroo in June, via The Agency’s Steven Chen.

It’s the highest price for a completed apartment in the country. Although there was a $140m transaction in 2019 – for the Lendlease Tower 1 development next door – that was off-the-plan and also an amalgamation of two apartments, which remains the nation’s highest property sale.

This latest sale was about $94,000 per square metre.

Designed by Meyer Davis, it includes a small pool with balcony.

All up there are four balconies, with views to Darling Harbour, North Sydney, the heart of the CBD and the iconic harbour.

5. 11 Coolong Rd, Vaucluse, About $62m

The Vaucluse waterfront next door to Menulog co-founder Leon Kamenov sold in September for about $62m.

The huge deal was a strong indication that the trophy home market was on fire at the start of spring, coming in the same week as two other big deals in the east – Iona in Darlinghurst for $37.5m and Carmel in Edgecliff for $28m..

The Vaucluse sale was a five-bedroom, six-bathroom residence with three-car garage at 11 Coolong Rd, the home of the late Magda Moss.

It had a $60m guide via Ray White Double Bay principal Elliott Placks in conjunction with Sotheby’s principal Michael Pallier.

There were several parties fighting over it.

Concierge East buyer’s agent Sean Huang, whose clients are often originally from China, represented the purchaser.

6. 10-12A Victoria Rd, Bellevue Hill, $59m

An unrenovated pink house and a neighbourig vacant block sold in early October for $59m to Gretel Packer, recently updated settlement records confirmed.

Packer’s mansion, Winston, was right next door, so it was a perfect opportunity to expand her luxury compound by an extra 2631sq m.

The property was owned by hardware tsar the late Graham Nock, of the Nock & Kirby family.

Nock had been approached many times by agents wanting to sell the huge property before his death in May at the age of 96.

His wife, Pamela, had died in 2022.

The $59m deal consisted of the 1960s house with pool on a 1442sq m block and the 1189sq m block next door.

Ken Jacobs of Forbes was behind the off-market deal.

7. 38 Vaucluse Rd, Vaucluse, $56m

This property, sold by Ray White Double Bay’s Riki Tawhara and principal Elliott Placks on June 18, was owned by 98-year-old philanthropist Isaac Wakil.

It’s known that buyer’s agent Simon Cohen introduced the purchasers, a local family, to the Vaucluse residence.

Unsurprisingly, the plan is to knock it down and build their dream home.

Wakil had owned the 1400sq m property, with its house set for the demolition ball but with panoramic Sydney Harbour views, for 65 years.

Isaac and his late wife Susan were immigrants from Romania and Iraq and had no children.

They owned a range of commercial properties across Sydney, including the Terminus Hotel in Pyrmont and the landmark Griffiths Tea building in Surry Hills.

8. 69 Wolseley Rd, Point Piper, $55m

Just before the 38 Vaucluse Rd sale, the luxury four-bedroom home on a 703sq m block owned by Retail Apparel Group co-founder Stephen Liebowitz and his wife, Pam, sold via Ray White Double Bay’s Adam Reichman and Elliott Placks in conjunction with Michael Pallier of Sotheby’s. It had a pool and iconic harbour views.

It’s yet to settle so we don’t know the purchaser.

9. 12 Dumaresq Rd, Bellevue Hill, $54.6m

The Bruce Stafford-designed six-bedroom residence owned by recycled shopping bag tycoon Frank Qiang Gengh and his wife Juanjuan Zhao sold in February, having had a $20m price cut from the $75m when first listed last June.

But the sale, via Michael Pallier of Sotheby’s and Brad Pillinger of Pillinger, was still sufficient to nab the Rose Bay house price record at the time, later surpassed by the $82.5m Tivoli Ave sale.

Back then, Gengh and Zhao were highly motivated sellers, having exchanged on the Point Piper mansion Rockleigh, home of medico specialist Philippa Harvey-Sutton, for about $82m.

10. Lansell Rd, Toorak, $50m

The third Melbourne residence in the national top 10 was the home of the late Marc and Eva Besen.

News Corp reported the sprawling Lansell Rd estate exchanged in May in an off-market deal via Ross Savas and Nick Kenyon of Kay & Burton.

Property documents confirmed the Besen’s four adult children – billionaire Daniel Besen, Sussan boss Naomi Milgrom, philanthropist Carol Schwartz and Besen Family Foundation chief executive Deborah Dadon – owned the property.

A well-placed source said the residence was a longstanding family base, steeped in private gatherings, philanthropic vision and commercial strategy, although the buyer’s identity remains a closely guarded secret.

“In Toorak, this is as close as it gets to royalty changing address,” the source explained.

“The Besens helped shape Melbourne through fashion, retail and philanthropy, selling the family home quietly.”

11. 3 Kirkoswald Ave, Mosman, $50m

The North Shore hit a new price record with this sale after less than a week on the market.

The contemporary Susan Rothwell-designed mansion had potential buyers swarming long before it appeared online, according to selling agent Michael Coombs, who listed the home of philanthropist Diane Balnaves with colleague Adrian Bridges from Atlas Lower North Shore.

Although both agents declined to comment on the sale, Coombs confirmed more than a dozen parties had been shown through the residence in three days, adding that half of them had put forward solid offers.

The campaign had launched with a guide of $45m to $50m. Sources close to the sale suggested the property sold at the very top end of the guide.

It last exchanged in 2001, before the full rebuild, for $6.525m.

When interviewed prior to the winning offer, Coombs said the six-bedroom house had long been coveted by neighbours.

“This is one of those iconic homes that throughout my career people have asked about buying. I’ve always told them no, now it’s a yes.”

12. 69 Victoria Rd, Bellevue Hill, $50m

Scape student housing boss Stephen Gaitanos and his wife Emma bought this six-bedroom mansion in November, moving from Hunters Hill.

The deal was done by Ray White Double Bay’s Elliott Placks and Ashley Bierman.

The vendor was Paul Oppenheim, the chair and co-founder of Plenary Group, and his wife Cathie.

The Oppenheims had bought it for $18.8m in 2017.

The three-storey home with tennis court and pool is on a 1714sq m block. There’s also a gym, an office, a steam room, a library and a rumpus room. The Oppenheims had done a reno, including updating the kitchen, but retained period details such as the leadlight windows.

The gardens are by Will Dangar.

13. 78 Kambala Rd, Bellevue Hill, $48,499,999

Award-winning film producer Warwick Ross, whose first big break was the 1980 classic The Blue Lagoon, sold his stunning mansion ahead of a mega international campaign in March.

McGrath Double Bay’s Luke Hogan and William Manning did the deal with buyer’s agents Simon Cohen and Isabella Lucas.

14. 19 Kent Rd, Rose Bay, $45.1m

This grand Rose Bay estate sold at a private auction in late August, setting an auction record.

Fittingly named due to its elevated position overlooking the Royal Sydney golf course, The Knoll at 19 Kent Rd – a deceased estate – is a rare six-bedroom trophy home and was always going to be popular.

But selling agents Michael Dunn and James Dunn of Richardson & Wrench Double Bay had few comparisons and struggled to find an appropriate guide in time for the Wentworth Courier House of the Week feature, though at the time they cited early interest in the $30m-$35m range.

Dunn was ecstatic with the result.

“I think it could be a record for a residential property sold at auction,” he said. “The vendors are very happy with the result, but it was a spirited auction and good properties like this always attract good interest.”

15. 45 Kambala Rd, Bellevue Hill, $45m

Ellie Tavakoli of the eastern suburbs’ Tavakoli family, who operates national retail group ACS Designer Bathrooms, sold a rebuilt home with a pool and tennis court on a 1183sq m block via Highland Double Bay Malouf director David Malouf with Alex Lyons of Raine and Horne Double Bay.

Updated property records show the buyer was Elham Dalvand.

16. 4 McLean Crescent, Mosman, $43,500,000

Louise Grinham and her fund manager husband, Richard, of Castlecrag snapped up this home on waterfront reserve at Chinaman’s Beach in August.

It was 1035sq m of land near the beach carpark, owned by property developer Vic Virgona and his wife Maria, who bought two neighbouring homes and combined them.

They owned the first one, then when the next-door home came up for sale in 2010 they bought that for $5.5m and joined them up.

The house had an indoor pool, a gym and four bedrooms, but its value was all in its position.

The Virgonas are moving to a Manly penthouse.

Rob Klaric, of The Property Expert International, said three buyers were after the property, and he represented the underbidder.

“You’ll never get that size of house anywhere so close to the water and it was presented beautifully,” he said.

The sale was negotiated by Glenn Curran of The Agency and Guido Scatizzi of BresicWhitney.

17 28 Victoria Rd, Bellevue Hill, $43,456,500

The French Riviera-­inspired residence on a 1252sq m block of hardware tsar turned property developer Fedor Czeiger and his wife, Elizabeth, sold in a private deal between neighbours in March.

They had bought the four-bedroom home for $6.25m in 2012 from the estate of the late Lady Sonia McMahon.

A caveat on the title revealed it was snapped up by Yi Dong and Moquan Dong, who are believed to have links to the owner of the neighbouring 774sq m property, Xiao Bei Shi, wife of billionaire property developer Phillip Dong Fang Lee, of 26A Victoria Rd.

The developer and his wife were in the news for clashing with Mid North Coast locals over their plans to carve up a rare 400ha bush block for housing. The locals say it should be national park.

18 16 March St, Bellevue Hill, $43m

The Bellevue Hill mansion of fashion stylist and personal shopper Natalie Jacobson and husband “Wazza” sold in April.

The five-bedroom recently completed three-level home on a 1278sq m block came with a resort-style heated magnesium pool, a championship-grade tennis court with lighting, a state-of-the-art gym, an infra-red sauna and a cinema.

It sold after three weeks via Ray White Double Bay’s Ashley Bierman and Elliott Placks.

It’s understood private equity investor Nick Speer and his wife, Camilla, snapped it up in a late-night deal via buyer’s agent Simon Cohen of Cohen Handler.

The deal smashed the previous street record of $25.2m set last January for a home across the road.

Jacobson and her husband Warren, chief executive of Camp Australia, bought the March St home for $8,625,000 in 2017 and rebuilt to a Nick Tobias design.

19 49 Coolawin Rd, Northbridge, $42,750,000

The largest waterfront landholding in Northbridge reset North Shore records when it sold in February via Michael Coombs and Andrew Drury of Atlas.

Sydney-based Manrong Xu snapped up the grand estate on a 3434sq m block.

Coombs said at the time of the listing in late January: “In my two decades of real estate, I’ve never come across a waterfront property like this.”

The vendor was Kristie Ward of the Primo Smallgoods family. She’d bought the six-bedroom mansion in 2017 for $21m from Robert and Kelly Salteri of the Transfield and Tenix infrastructure family.

20 26-27 Olola Ave, Vaucluse, $42m

Owned by freight boss Arthur Tzaneros, the five-bedroom, six-bathroom residence on a massive 2,266sq m block came with a pool, a championship-sized tennis court and harbour views to the Manly headlands, yet it took 21 months to sell, in March.

Its most recent agents, Highland Double Bay Malouf’s David Malouf with Michael Pallier of Sotheby’s, had a $45m guide.

When listed initially with different agents the guide was $50m-$55m. Tzaneros and his wife, Maude, had bought it in 2021 for $32m.

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The post Top 20 home sales of 2025: Melbourne wins with $131m+ sale appeared first on realestate.com.au.

America’s housing affordability crisis is an equal-opportunity phenomenon. Nowhere is this more painfully clear than in the nation’s rural communities, which quietly confront a deepening affordability gap. Financing challenges unique to rural areas pursuing affordable housing development exacerbate a growing imbalance.

A new Redfin study notes that home prices in rural communities have increased faster than those in urban and suburban areas since the pandemic. Rural homebuyers now need to earn $75,000 to afford the typical home, more than twice the $36,000 required before the pandemic. 

The median home sale price in rural areas is up 61% since the days before the pandemic, compared with 46% in urban areas and 49% in suburban areas. During the same period, the median household income in rural areas increased by only 33%, compared with 37% in suburban areas and 39% in urban areas. 

This begs a couple of questions. How can we build more quality, affordable housing in rural areas? And what potential solutions are in place to increase homeownership?

A panel from the National Housing Conference’s Solutions for Affordable Housing met last week to address these questions. One of the main conclusions was that financing affordable housing in rural areas can be uniquely challenging.

In addition to a lack of available capital, there are also labor constraints, and rural economies are often more unstable. 

Drawing on discussions from the NHC’s rural affordable housing panel held last week, this analysis outlines major financing hurdles and examines potential ways to broaden homeownership opportunities in rural communities.

Rural areas have different market dynamics and economies than urban areas

When Tyson Foods announced last month that it plans to close a beef plant in Lexington, Neb., the news made headlines across the country for a good reason. 

The plant employs about 3,200 people in a town with a population of just over 10,000. If the plant does close down, the entire community’s economy will be decimated overnight. 

While most small towns aren’t reliant on one company as much as Lexington is, rural areas are much more likely to be dependent on just one industry or employer than large metropolitan areas. This can make investing in small towns more complex. 

“You have to have local market knowledge, and we lean on our developer sponsors and our local government contacts to help inform us,” said Matt Reilein, President and CEO of National Equity Fund (NEF), a non-profit, affordable real estate investment manager. 

Identifying labor sources in certain rural areas can also be a struggle, especially amid a national construction labor shortage. There are simply fewer options to choose from in small towns. 

“It becomes difficult sometimes to actually identify the individuals, the organizations that are actually going to build the properties,” Reilein said. 

For builders looking to develop rural housing, especially affordable units, partnering with an organization that has local connections and insights is critical. 

“You have to have organizations that can get to specific geography and bring that expertise with them. That’s why we lean in a ton on what we refer to as capacity building for our borrowers. Folks come to us, they want to build or preserve affordable housing in a rural place, and we almost always have our loan fund hand them to the capacity training and technical assistance staff first for some work to do there, because we want them to succeed,” said David Lipsetz, President & CEO at the Housing Assistance Council. 

Financing affordable rural housing is a challenge

Attracting investment for affordable housing in rural areas can be difficult, in part because lenders often look for larger deals. There are also issues with the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA), which is intended to encourage banks to lend across all communities, including low- to moderate-income neighborhoods, but has traditionally placed less emphasis on rural areas.

“In this capital market, the large allocators of dollars are looking to write significant checks. And whether they’re CRA motivated or economically motivated, it’s sort of the same analysis. They want to be as efficient and effective as they possibly can be, and that necessarily means writing larger checks,” Reilein said. 

Reilein provided two examples where NEF worked around this reality. One was in Grant County, Washington, where NEF partnered with Catholic Charities to recapitalize three Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) properties. The three properties have a combined total of 95 units, but each is relatively small on its own. 

“You couldn’t raise the capital to do one of those deals in an effective, efficient manner. But working with the sponsor, you’re able to aggregate those, and working with the state and FHA, you can get them under the same allocation of the tax credits. So you start to find those efficiencies,” he said. 

NEF also partners with NeighborWorks, a network with nearly 250 nonprofit organizations in all 50 states. NeighborWorks is one of the largest developers and owners of affordable housing nationwide, but most of those partners are relatively small organizations. Many of them only do a deal every few years. 

NEF works with NeighborWorks to provide transparent and fair lending for these smaller organizations. 

“From a LIHTC perspective, the issue is, if you’re a smaller organization, whether you’re an urban, suburban or rural market, and you’re only doing a deal every 2,3, or 5 years, you don’t have the personnel capacity, you don’t have the market Intel, you don’t have the buying power, you don’t have the relationships with investors to get what I would call a fair and transparent transaction,” Reilein said. 

Lipsetz said that Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs), such as the Housing Assistance Council, are best positioned to finance rural affordable housing projects. 

“You need access to capital that knows where it’s going and is familiar with the geography. CDFIs are the only answer I’ve really seen grow to try to address that,” he claimed. 

Bill Bynum, CEO of HOPE, similarly referred to CDFIs as “gap-filling organizations in rural communities”. 

Leveraging LIHTC to increase homeownership opportunities

HOPE does a lot of work in impoverished towns in the deep south, in states such as Mississippi and Alabama. Bynum pointed to the LIHTC program as a way to increase homeownership in those areas. 

In Mississippi, for example, there’s a provision in the LIHTC program that allows renters to purchase the home in the 16th year. HOME works with enterprises such as Wells Fargo to structure a mortgage comparable to the amount tenants have been paying in rent. 

“We generate hundreds of mortgages each year, with low to no down payment. We use non-traditional credit to underwrite the loans, and that’s what is necessary for these LIHTC tenants,” Bynum said. “We use their rental record. If they have been paying that rent for 15 years in a strong way, then we take that as a pretty good indication that they can continue to manage that expense going forward.”

“If you replicate that across the deep south, replicate that across the country, I think it’s an incredible model for helping people become homeowners.”

The road ahead for rural affordable housing

Rural housing faces many challenges, and an ongoing crisis impacting the USDA’s 515 program threatens to worsen the affordable housing picture in rural America. The 515 program provides direct, low-interest loans to developers to develop and preserve affordable multifamily rental housing in rural areas. 

The program peaked at 550,000 units, but is now likely below 400,000 units. This is partly because no new construction has been carried out under the program since 2012. 

There has also been a recent wave of mortgage maturities and payoffs. When government-backed mortgages financed under the 515 program mature or are prepaid, many owners convert their multifamily properties to market-rate rents or sell them to buyers who will do so. 

Lipsetz voiced concern about the declining impact of the 515 program and called for expanding the USDA’s Section 502 Direct Home Loan Program, which provides loans to low-income rural borrowers. He also hopes that new federal funding will be proportionally used to encourage housing supply in rural communities.

Reilein, however, was optimistic for the future of rural housing, noting that LIHTC investors he partners with are increasingly focused on rural areas. As he sees it, the current administration places more emphasis on investing in rural America. Investors may be following the administration’s lead. 

“They are actively adjusting their priorities based on current public policy priorities, which is very clearly directing more and more attention to rural markets. And they’ve explicitly said they want to figure out how to do this. Now it’s one thing to say that in a conference room. It is another thing to actually execute on it,” he said. “I think that there is a moment here where some of these huge banks and insurance companies are having to focus on rural markets.”

The American Financial Services Association (AFSA), the nation’s oldest and largest consumer credit trade group, on Tuesday released its quarterly Consumer Credit Conditions Index. It found that AFSA members’ assessment of current conditions turned slightly negative in the third quarter of 2025.

More respondents reported worsening business conditions than improving conditions, pushing the survey’s Net Increasing Index (NII) to -5.9, ending a streak of four straight positive quarters.

The index surveys lenders across the mortgage, auto financing, personal lending and credit card industries, providing insights into lenders’ views on business conditions and the personal economic environment.

In contrast, lenders’ outlook for the next six months strengthened sharply and reached its highest level since Q4 2024, with an NII of +20.6.

“Against a complex economic backdrop which saw deterioration in labor market conditions together with an elevated, but stabilizing, pace of inflation, consumer lenders reported weakening loan demand in the third quarter compared to the second quarter,” said Tim Gill, AFSA’s chief economist and vice president for research.

“On the other hand, Q3 actions by the Federal Reserve to cut short-term rates, along with the continuation of a downward trend in long-term rates, contributed to an improvement in lenders’ funding costs. Looking ahead, signs of easing financial conditions, including further interest rate cuts, are fueling positive expectations for both overall and subprime loan demand and continued improvement in funding costs.”

Twenty-one percent of respondents reported an improved business environment, including 5.9% who said conditions improved considerably. By contrast, 26.5% reported deterioration, including 5.9% who said conditions worsened significantly.

Overall loan demand fell, with 35.3% reporting a decrease versus 23.5% reporting an increase. Subprime loan demand dropped more sharply, with an NII of -22.2. As for loan performance, the overall NII flipped to -8.8 from positive readings in prior surveys. The subprime loan performance index dropped to -14.3, compared to +8.8 in Q2 2025.

AFSA’s report found that funding costs improved for the fifth consecutive quarter, with an NII of +42.2, up from +26.3 in the prior quarter.

Looking ahead, 41% of respondents expect overall business conditions to improve over the next six months. Another 20.6% expect deterioration and 38% anticipate little change. Expected overall loan demand rose to an NII of +26.5, while subprime demand is projected at +14.8.

Expected funding costs strengthened sharply, with an NII of +57.6, but expected loan performance slipped to -8.8 overall and -44.4 for subprime loans.

“Signs of consumer stress are evident in the third quarter results, but lenders feel good about the direction that the economy is headed, driven by a lower interest rate environment,” said Celia Winslow, AFSA’s president and CEO.

“The divergence between overall and subprime loan performance expectations highlights the particularly challenging situation of lower-income and higher-credit risk groups in the current and near-future economic environment and are broadly consistent with other measures of credit delinquency.”

Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate (BHGRE) released its 2026 Design Trends Moving Real Estate Report — outlining features and design preferences driving homebuyers in the year ahead.

The report draws on a national consumer study conducted by thinqinsights, as well as insights from BHGRE-affiliated agents and experts.

“Homeownership remains one of life’s most monumental transactions, and today buyers are approaching that life goal with new expectations,” said Ginger Wilcox, president of Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate. “High barriers to entry have created a generation of buyers who know what they want and won’t settle for less. These insights can help sellers and agents make design and presentation choices that resonate with modern buyers who are eager but increasingly discerning.”

The report highlights six key themes influencing homebuying decisions, including;

The new starter home: With the average first-time homebuyer nearing age 40, affordability is no longer the only priority. Buyers want a smaller footprint with meaningful design, natural beauty and personalization — a top priority for nearly half of respondents.

Paint colors that sell: Forty percent of buyers say paint color strongly shapes their first impression, with another third saying it captures their attention. Earth-inspired tones and classic neutrals are gaining influence in how buyers perceive value.

Influencer-driven design: Social media is reshaping wish lists, pushing features such as organized pantries, reading nooks and artisan kitchens from viral trends into real-world expectations.

Layout matters more than size: Eighty-six percent of buyers say flexible layouts help them see past square footage. Functionality, flow and multipurpose spaces for work and family life now outweigh raw size.

Craftsmanship counts: Buyers are increasingly focused on quality. Custom millwork, natural materials and artisanal details are viewed as worth the investment.

Curb appeal 2.0.: Nearly half of buyers say they won’t buy a home that doesn’t feel right the moment they walk in — and that impression starts at the curb. Native landscaping, organic textures and balanced, welcoming entryways are leading exterior trends.

BHGRE also announced the consumer-selected 2026 Paint Colors of the Year; Calming Coastal Blue for interiors and Soft Stone Gray for exteriors.

To help its network translate the findings into action, the brand will also release an Agent Playbook designed to show how to use these trends to better position listings and guide clients.

Highlights from the playbook are set to include guidance on positioning starter homes as “smart” rather than small, using paint and lighting to create a move-in-ready sense of warmth and staging properties with social-media-friendly features in mind.

The full report can be found here.