Real Estate News

Those Potholes In Your Street Reveal A Money Problem For Cities And States

Published by maggie@omahadai... on Thu, 05/21/2026 - 12:00am

Across the country, potholes are more than a seasonal nuisance. They are a visible symptom of aging roads and bridges that many state and local governments say they cannot afford to fully maintain.

From local streets in small towns to major urban corridors, transportation agencies are grappling with deferred maintenance, rising construction costs and limited revenue streams. Even as federal infrastructure dollars increased in recent years, some transportation officials and infrastructure experts say the need continues to outpace available funding.

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Starting Fires Helped Contain A Nebraska Wildfire — And Ignited Another

Published by maggie@omahadai... on Thu, 05/21/2026 - 12:00am

A drip torch owned by Austin Klemm was used to help contain the Cottonwood Fire that burned in Dawson, Lincoln and Frontier counties in March.
(Photo courtesy of Austin Klemm)

This story is made possible through a partnership between Flatwater Free Press and Grist (https://grist.org/), a nonprofit environmental media organization.

As the fast-moving blaze rolled toward Fire Chief Jason Schneider’s district in Cozad, he and his crew faced a literal uphill battle.

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Pillen Assures Safety As Nebraska Hosts Passengers From Hantavirus-Hit Ship

Published by maggie@omahadai... on Thu, 05/14/2026 - 12:00am

A room inside the Nebraska Biocontainment Unit on the Omaha campus of the University of Nebraska Medical Center. One of the hantavirus-hit cruise ship passengers brought to Nebraska was admitted to this unit. The rest are in a special quarantine unit for monitoring.
(Courtesy of UNMC)

OMAHA — Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen tried to assure the public that a “strong” plan is in place to safely handle 16 American passengers of the hantavirus-stricken cruise ship who arrived early Monday to the University of Nebraska Medical Center campus in midtown Omaha.

Of the group brought to Nebraska, 15 who have shown no symptoms of the disease are being monitored in the hotel room-like quarters of a quarantine unit. That unit is the only federally funded facility designed to safely house and observe people who may have been exposed to high-consequence infectious diseases.

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High-Flying Children

Published by maggie@omahadai... on Thu, 05/14/2026 - 12:00am

Is it not joy for a parent, caregiver, or even teacher when a small child giggles uncontrollably? That the sounds of their unbridled cackles in a world which we, as adults, have seen such cruelty, only further denotes their innocence. When I was younger, and my father would come home from work or from teaching taekwondo, he would step through the front door exhausted and still point to me. My brow would narrow as I knew what time it was.

Time to wrestle!

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President Of Parks And Rec? Trump Asserts Authority Over Public Spaces In DC

Published by maggie@omahadai... on Thu, 05/14/2026 - 12:00am

As National Guard soliders patrol, workers continue to apply a blue protective coating as part of a renovation project to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, Friday, May 8, 2026, on the National Mall in Washington.
(Rahmat Gul / AP Photo)

WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge weighing the future of an expansive Washington park insisted this week she had no intention of becoming Amy Poehler, the actress who spent seven seasons memorably playing the head of a local parks and recreation department.

But President Donald Trump might be interested in the role.

Shortly after the United States and Iran exchanged fire on Thursday, Trump made a quick jaunt to the National Mall to review the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool that he ordered repainted a color he describes as “American flag blue.”

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How The Strait Of Hormuz Affects The Price Of Filling Your Gas Tank

Published by maggie@omahadai... on Thu, 05/14/2026 - 12:00am

On paper it makes little sense. Ship traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, roughly 7,000 miles from the United States, is restricted and gasoline prices in this country soar?

The strait is the major export route for oil produced by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, Iraq, Bahrain and Iran, according to the International Energy Agency. But since Feb. 28, when the Iran war began and the narrow passageway between Oman and Iran became a battleground, U.S. gasoline prices have soared — and the prices of consumer products and services are poised to jump as well.

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Rural Nebraska Village Aims To Survive, Grow With New Housing Efforts

Published by maggie@omahadai... on Thu, 05/07/2026 - 12:00am

Bluestem Prairie homes built by Habitat For Humanity.
(Courtesy of Habitat For Humanity)

LINCOLN — The south-central Nebraska town of Bertrand hadn’t seen a newly built house or apartment for 16 years until a fiveplex rose on an old mobile home park in 2024.

Among the first to live in the $1.1 million rental property was a school teacher, a young manufacturing worker and a retired man whose move there opened up a for-sale dwelling in the rural community of about 750.

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Habitat For Humanity Is Developing A New Atlanta Community With Help From The Carters' Initiative

Published by maggie@omahadai... on Thu, 05/07/2026 - 12:00am

Home owners Phileena Daniel and Oswaldo Herrera pose for a photo in Langston Park, April 13, 2026, in Atlanta.
(Mike Stewart / AP Photo)

ATLANTA (AP) — Walking through the frame of his soon-to-be new home on a recent morning, an excited Ozzy Herrera could envision the future. A brown leather sofa to match the floors. Terra-cotta-colored walls. A bar cart near the kitchen.

Herrera, who works two jobs at Atlanta's airport, never imagined he would own a home at the age of 27.

“It’s special. It’s magical,” he said.

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How Balcony Solar Can Help Renters And Homeowners Save Money

Published by maggie@omahadai... on Thu, 05/07/2026 - 12:00am

Somewhere between 5% and 7% of U.S. households have rooftop solar panels. Many more Americans want them, but high costs, building locations and landlord restrictions are key obstacles.

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Single-Family Housing Starts In March At Their Highest Since 2022

Published by maggie@omahadai... on Thu, 05/07/2026 - 12:00am

Single-family housing starts in March were at their highest since 2022, a fast start to the construction year that could bring more supply to home markets that are still painfully expensive.

The new data from surveys was released April 29 by the U.S. Census Bureau, with information from February and March delayed by issues with the federal government shutdown.