Want more housing market stories from Lance LambertsResiClubin your inbox?Subscribeto theResiClubnewsletter.National home prices are up 2.3% year-over-year between November 2023 and November 2024, according to the Zillow Home Value Index. While that marks a decelerationback in March 2024 that year-over-year national home price growth rate was 4.6%it also marks the 13th straight calendar year that national home prices are up.However, not every housing market saw rising home prices in 2024.Among the 250 largest metro area housing markets, 28 markets are seeing falling home prices on a year-over-year basis heading into 2025.While home prices are still rising in tight inventory markets in places like most of the Northeast, Midwest, and Southern California, some regional housing markets in states such as Texas, Florida, and Louisiana, where inventory has risen above pre-pandemic 2019 levels, are experiencing mild home price corrections.That includes major metros like Austin (-3.4%); San Antonio, Texas (-2.4%); Tampa (-1.9%); New Orleans (-1.9%); Jacksonville (-0.7%); Dallas (-0.5%); and Phoenix (-0.4%).Many of the softest housing markets, where homebuyers have gained leverage, are located in Sun Belt regions of the Gulf Coast and Mountain West. These areas were home to many of the nations top pandemic boomtowns, which experienced significant home price growth during the pandemic housing boom, which stretched housing affordability far beyond local income levels. When pandemic-fueled migration slowed and mortgage rates spiked, markets like Cape Coral, Florida, and Austin, Texas, faced challenges as they had to rely on local incomes to sustain bubbly home prices.The housing market softening in these areas was further accelerated by the abundance of new home supply in the pipeline across the Sun Belt. Builders in these regions are often willing to reduce prices or make affordability adjustments to maintain sales. These adjustments in the new construction market also create a cooling effect on the resale market, as some buyers who might have opted for an existing home shift their focus to new homes where deals are still available.Will this softening carry over into 2025?When it comes to asset prices, in particular home prices, it can be hard to judge when markets have actually peaked and when theyve bottomed. Economists at Zillow expect many of the softer 2024 housing markets to tighten up in 2025, while Moodys expects continued softening in most of those markets.The key factor to watch will be active inventory for sale. If weaker housing markets like Austin and Tampa continue to experience significant increases in active inventorywhich has already risen above pre-pandemic levels in those areasit could indicate further softening in those markets, creating opportunities for homebuyers.

Searching for a new job has never been easy, but right now it can seem especially brutal. Competition is fiercer than ever before; according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, your chance of receiving an offer after applying to as many as 80 roles stands at just 31%. Each one of those applications takes time, so its understandable to do whatever you can to streamline the process, including by employing Big Techs favorite obsession: Artificial intelligence.LinkedIn has obliged, rolling out several AI tools over the past year that help with the application process, helping you compose (or rewrite) everything from your resume and cover letters to original posts and even personalized messages for hiring managers. LinkedIns AI tools are built on, and powered by, OpenAIs ChatGPT. (Microsoft, who owns LinkedIn, has invested nearly $14 billion in OpenAI.)LinkedIns AI-powered job-assessment toolavailable now to premium subscribers and in early 2025 to everyone elseidentifies listings for which youd be a top applicant and marks them with a gold square. The tool works by analyzing keywords in your profile against the job descriptionso the more detailed your profile, the better the results. In an internal LinkedIn survey, more than 90% of premium subscribers found the tool useful. No data is available as to whether the feature leads to a quicker job hunt, unfortunately.Before you tap ChatGPT to cowrite your resume and cover letters, take heed. Errors induced by AI generated text often include fabricated statistics and vague phrases like operational efficiency. The pros are getting better about spotting such text. When I see someones resume and every single metric ends in a zero or a five, I know theyve used AI, says Sam Struan, a Glasgow-based recruiter and resume writer for hire.Struan estimates that about 60% of his clients arrive with AI-assisted resumes and a litany of job woes. Theyre coming to me because theyre not landing interviews, Struan says. Thankfully, the fix often is as simple as stripping away the slop. I usually have to strip it down and remove a lot of the fluff and bring a little bit more of a human element to the writing.Ryan Hunt, a designer based in Chicago, has been seeking a new job for more than a year. He currently works full time at a design studio, a role he took out of necessity after getting laid off from a better-paying job. Balancing the job search while fulfilling his current responsibilities proved draining, so Hunt turned to AI for help with the part of the process he likes the least: writing cover letters. That certainly made applications easier to complete, but it hasnt helped him land a new position.Hunt says he wasnt invited to a single interview for roles he applied to using an AI-assisted cover letterwhile he has received callbacks for roles that didnt require a cover letter, or that he applied to without AIs help. It really just feels like it doesnt matter, Hunt says. And maybe I just need to be applying for things that I feel confident are a good fit.Hunt isnt alone. This past November, the Bureau of Labor Statistics found that the number of people experiencing long-term unemploymentjobless for more than 27 weekshad risen in the year prior, from 1.2 million in November 2023 to 1.7 million. (At the same time, the job market is strong, with an overall unemployment rate of just 4.2%.)If youve ever asked yourself, Will hiring managers spot my AI-drafted resume?, the answer is yes. In fact, hiring managers have taken towhere else?LinkedIn to gripe about AIs outsized and seemingly unstoppable role in todays hiring process. A sameness already suffused most every resume and cover letter, but AI has reduced them to a new level of banality. According to a recent survey conducted by the career platform CV Genius, 80% of hiring managers expressed a distaste for AI-generated contentand 74% claimed to know an AI application when they saw one. (Hint: Avoid using synergize and other such business-speak.)Despite the uproar a few months ago to the revelation that LinkedIn had been using users data without telling them to train its AI model, frequent LinkedIn posters are apparently also pro-AI. According to a recent study first reported in Wired, more than 50% of all longform posts published on LinkedIn are suspected to have included language written by generative AI.LinkedIn says their tools are designed to help job seekers and hiring managers alike to identify quality applicants, rather than game the system or apply to jobs by the hundreds, a strategy colloquially known as spray and pray. While its kind of natural to think volume is your friend, its going to be a more efficient marketplace if people focus on the jobs where theyre a better fit, where their skills are transferable, says LinkedIn spokesperson Suzi Owens. She adds, At the end of the day, people hire humans, not tools. The idea is that [AI] is a helping hand.

Whether to raise money, placate shareholders, or generate positive press, AIs biggest companies have a habit of announcing advancements that are nowhere near ready to ship.The industry term for this is vaporware, defined as products that arrive much later than initially anticipated or in some cases not at all. The AI industry has puffed out plenty of vaporware over the last year, making it tough to distinguish hype from reality.As we head into 2025, lets look at the biggest AI products and promises that havent quite panned out yet:Alexas generative AI overhaulBack in September 2023, Amazon announced a smarter and more conversational Alexa powered by large language models. A future version of the voice assistant, Amazon claimed, would not only allow for more naturally flowing conversations, but would understand nonverbal cues such as body language and eye contact using the cameras built into certain Echo devices. Once this optional Alexa overhaul arrived, Amazon suggested that youd have to pay for it.More than a year later, the future of Alexa is in limbo. A report by Bloomberg in October said that beta testers were unhappy with the new version, which gave stiff, long-winded responses and failed to work with existing smart home integrations. Reuters also reported on problems with Amazons in-house language models, prompting the company to seek help from Anthropics Claude. Having scrapped plans to debut the new Alexa in October, Amazon is reportedly targeting a 2025 launch now.OpenAIs GPT-5In fairness, OpenAI never officially said that it would release GPT-5 in 2024, but CEO Sam Altman confirmed in late 2023 that the company had started working on it. In March, Business Insider cited unnamed sources in claiming that the new large language model would arrive around midyear, quoting an unnamed CEO who called it materially better after reportedly seeing a demo.But by midyear, Altman was already tempering expectations, saying that we still have a lot of work to do on GPT-5, and in October he told an audience on Reddit not to expect the new model this year. The company instead released GPT-o1, which it claims can process queries more thoroughly but is also much slower and more expensive.Claude 3.5 OpusOpenAI isnt alone in pushing back new large language models. As recently as October, Anthropics model documentation page was promising a 2024 launch for Claude 3.5 Opus, a new version of its largest language model. Now, that same page doesnt mention Opus at all.Dario Amodei, Anthropics cofounder and CEO, told Lex Fridman last month that the plan is still to have a Claude 3.5 Opus, but didnt provide any timing. And while theres some talk of Anthropic just using 3.5 Opus to feed synthetic data to its cheaper models, it could also be another sign of diminishing returns for cutting-edge models.Apple Intelligences Personal ContextLook back at the first press release for Apple Intelligence from June, and youll notice a big focus on personal context. The phrase appears three times in the announcements first two paragraphs, hinting at a version of Siri that can dig up information from emails, texts, notes, and more. Our unique approach combines generative AI with a users personal context to deliver truly helpful intelligence, CEO Tim Cook proclaimed at the time.Although Apple Intelligence arrived in October, the personal context is still missing. Apples opted to stagger its AI feature releases over the next year, and Siris contextual powers didnt make the cut for 2024. Its still unclear exactly when those capabilities will arrive.Multi-step reasoning in Google SearchDuring its I/O conference in May, Google said it would soon bring multi-step reasoning capabilities to Searchs AI Overviews, allowing users to ask complex questions with nuances and caveats. For instance, you could ask Find the best yoga or pilates studios in Boston and show me details on their intro offers, and walking time from Beacon Hill, and Googles Gemini AI would pull all of that info together into a series of info boxes.Google now says those capabilities will have to wait for the Gemini 2.0 version of AI Overviews, which just entered limited testing. Supposedly youll start seeing multi-step reasoning in search results early next year.Googles Project AstraGoogles biggest AI-related I/O reveal was Project Astra, a prototype app that can identify what youre looking at in real-time, answer back-and-forth questions about it, and remember key points of what youre talking about over a 10-minute conversation. In other words, its supposed to be a usable version of last years Gemini AI demo video that turned out to be staged.Only you still cant use it today. Although Google originally planned to launch something like Astra this year, its pushed the timeframe into 2025. And while Google is working with Samsung on an augmented reality headset and has given on-rails demos to the press, theres no price or release date on that product either.Samsungs and LGs AI home robotsLast Januarys CES trade show was great venue for demonstrating the desperation of electronics vendors to position themselves as AI leaders. Cases in point are Samsung and LG, which both showed off competing smart home robots with AI capabilities. A teaser video for Samsungs Ballie, for instance, showed the robot alerting its owner via text message that her dog was making a mess, then responding to instructions to give the dog a snack and put on its favorite video. LG promised similar capabilities for its Zero Labor Home Smart Home AI Agent, touting its ability to understand context and intentions as well as actively communicate with users.Like so much other CES vaporware, neither of these robots have materialized as actual products you can buy, but we shouldnt be surprised; Samsung has been talking about some version of Ballie without shipping it for nearly five years now.

An exposed concrete frame infilled with reclaimed stone walls encases warm, timber-lined interiors at this homenear Beijing by architecture studio Chaoffice.Named House of Bluff, the five-bedroom house was built on a disused site described by the studio as a "wasteland", covered with rubble and stones from a partially collapsed building.Beijing-based Chaoffice repurposed these old stones to infill the home's exposed concrete frame, defining a playful two-storey form that incorporates terraces, walkways and courtyards connected by a metal staircase and slide.Chaoffice has completed House of Bluff in a village near Beijing"We decided to build a house featuring multiple semi-outdoor spaces and independent structures, creating a sense of grandiosity despite the limited footprint," explained the studio."Working with a limited budget, we created the simple geometric forms, infusing the space with a sense of rejuvenation turning a piece of wasteland into a playground," it added.The overall plan of the home is defined by two existing trees on the site, each used as the focal point for two courtyards that divide the home into a more public living wing to the west and a more private wing to the east containing the bedrooms and staff areas.Old stones were repurposed to infill the home's exposed concrete frameUsing the exposed concrete grid as an organising device, it was then either enclosed to create internal spaces or left open to frame a series of terraces and walkways."The design centres around a basic cubic unit of 4.5 metres by 4.5 metres, which then forms houses, porches, or 'hollow frames'," explained the studio."In some instances, sections of these units were partially removed to enhance light and sight-lines for the neighbours, as well as to soften the building's presence on the adjacent street."A metal staircase and slide connect the two-storey building's terraces and walkwaysOrganised across two storeys, the home is entered from a higher position on the site's western edge, where a long, wooden stair leads down into the double-height living area.Highlighting the building's split levels, full-height windows overlook a terrace with a sunken bath accessible via a separate ground floor entrance, while clerestory glazing frames views of the horizon.Read: CPlus Architects uses pale bricks for "rustic" home in rural ChinaChanges in level are a recurring motif across the site, with a metal slide connecting the entrance hall to the courtyard, and a metal spiral stair connecting the two levels of the outdoor walkway that links the home's two wings.Once at ground floor level, the lower kitchen space is centred around a concrete fireplace, extending upwards in concrete columns that support the bath above, the form of which is reflected in a stepped, wood-panelled ceiling.The double-height living area is accessed by descending a wooden staircaseThroughout the interiors, the rougher character of the exposed concrete frame and reclaimed stone is contrasted by plywood panelling, used to line walls, storage spaces and built-in benches."The walls are finished with warm-toned stucco plaster, with the projecting structural frames re-covered in wooden paneling," explained the studio."This deliberate interplay of two materials not only creates a striking visual contrast but also implied the dualistic juxtaposition of structure and maintenance systems, enriching its architectural narrative."Plywood panelling is used for the interiors to contrast the concrete and stoneBased in Beijing, Chaoffice was founded in 2016 by Cheng Zhi.Other homes in China recently featured on Dezeen include a "rustic and warm" brick home designed by CPlus Architects to demonstrate the potential of the often overlooked rural outskirts of Beijing.The photography is by Zhu Yumeng.The post Chaoffice fills concrete grid with reclaimed stone for home in rural China appeared first on Dezeen.

From a slender home nestled into an infill site in Wisconsin to a micro home prototype in Indore, here are Dezeen's houses of the month for December.Other houses featured in our monthly roundup of the most popular residences published on Dezeen include a London home defined by brick and natural ash cladding and ...Read on to find out more about Dezeen readers' favourite houses this month:Photo by The Space Tracing CompanyTiny House, India, Harshit Singh Kothari and Tanvi JainThe most popular house featured on Dezeen this month was Tiny House, which Harshit Singh Kothari and Tanvi Jain designed as a micro home prototype to address India's affordable housing shortage.Sat on a compact site in Indore and built on a budget of 455,000 rupees (4,500), the home was designed as a reconfigurable space with high ceilings.Find out more about this house Photo by John J. MacaulayCurtain House, US, Johnsen Schmaling ArchitectsJohnsen Schmaling Architects used wood and aluminium louvres to animate the facade of this slender infill home in Wisconsin.The 7-metre-wide Curtain House was conceived as a rectangular box that stretches the length of the site and is organised around an internal courtyard.Find out more about this house Photo by Ellen Christina Hancock and Lewis GregoryCoach House, UK, Open Practice Architecture and Kinder DesignOpen Practice Architecture and Kinder Design collaborated to design this family home nestled into an infill site in London.Named Coach House, the home was built using reclaimed bricks to blend in with the neighbouring buildings, while an adjacent annexe was finished both internally and externally with natural ash cladding.Find out more about this house Villa Sidonius, Czech Republic, Stempel & TesarThis bridge-like home on a hill overlooking Prague in Czech Republic were designed by Stempel & Tesar.The black-steel, steel-framed house was raised on large concrete supports so it could capture views of the nearby Berounka valley and maximise sunlight on the shaded site.Find out more about this house Flint Farm, UK, Will Gamble ArchitectsDescribed as "unashamedly contemporary", this extension to English farmhouse in north Hertfordshire was added by Will Gamble Architects.Named Flint Farm, the glass-lined extension was added to a renovated black barn at the Grade II-listed farmhouse.Find out more about this house The post Dezeen's top five houses of December 2024 appeared first on Dezeen.

German studio GMP Architekten has refurbished and extended Alsterschwimmhalle, a swimming pool in Hamburg with a distinctive double-curved concrete roof.After being forced to close during the coronavirus pandemic, Alsterschwimmhalle has been transformed into a multipurpose leisure complex with a sauna and fitness club.GMP Architekten has revamped Alsterschwimmhalle in HamburgGMP Architekten's overhaul ensures the focal point of the structure remains its heritage-listed roof, which is formed of two soaring hyperbolic paraboloid structures crafted from prestressed concrete.This unusual design has led the centre to be known as Schwimmoper, or Swimming Opera, as locals say its sweeping forms bear a resemblance to the Sydney Opera House by Jrn Utzon.The pool has a "cityscape-defining" roof"When developing the refurbishment concept, the focus was on preserving the striking, cityscape-defining roof with its impressive shell design," said GMP Architekten's detailed design lead Jrn Ortmann."This was to be preserved or rather reestablished in its original appearance," he told Dezeen.A diving pool replaces bleacher seating beside the main poolAlsterschwimmhalle was designed by German architects Horst Niessen, Rolf Strmer and Walter Neuhusser with engineer Jrg Schlaich for use as a competition pool and was constructed between 1968 and 1974.It is described by GMP Architekten as "an outstanding example of Hamburg's post-war architecture", with its roof listed as a protected structure by Germany's Office for the Preservation of Historic Monuments.However, it required a revamp after the deterioration of its facilities, which contributed to its closure in 2020.Its roof has been retained as the focal point"The Alstersschwimmhalle was in operation until 2020 and was only closed as part of the measures to combat the coronavirus pandemic," Ortmann explained."The maintenance costs for the building and its outdated technical installations had increased significantly in the years before," he continued. "Structural damage and the outdated technical systems necessitated a major overhaul.""In addition, the limited range of sports facilities had a negative impact on commercial viability, and there was no space within the building for expansion."The glass facade has been restoredAlsterschwimmhalle's roof structure is just eight centimetres thick and reaches 24 metres at its peak. It covers a floor area of 4,500 square metres with spans as long as 96 metres, which the studio said makes it "one of the largest roofs of its kind in the world".Three supports hold the roof up, two of which are linked via a tie beam beneath the main pool. Restoring the building without disrupting them posed a huge challenge for the studio.The pool closed during the coronavirus pandemic"The big challenge regarding structural safety related to the fact that parts of the old pool had to be demolished and rebuilt without modifying the existing roof or disturbing it during construction work," Ortmann explained."This meant that the tie beam between the foundations could not be touched and was constantly monitored during construction work."Its roof has been restored with a new membrane and insulation, developed to withstand damage from rising chlorine, high humidity, and high temperatures.As part of the project, the main glass facade and various exposed concrete surfaces have been revived, while the sports facilities themselves underwent a more extensive redesign.Existing concrete surfaces have been left exposedThe 50-metre pool and its 10-metre diving board are largely unchanged, but its bleacher seating has been replaced with a separate diving pool.All public spaces have been remodelled to maximise accessibility while building services have been updated to improve efficiency and environmental performance.Read: GMP Architekten renovates hyperbolic 1960s hall in MagdeburgAn extension to the north of the building to the north accommodates a second pool measuring 25 metres in length, alongside a training pool, changing rooms, saunas and fitness facilities.According to GMP Architekten, the ambition for the extension was to ensure it read as part of the existing complex without mimicking it.A new roof membrane prevents chlorine damage"The necessary extensions were carefully integrated into the overall ensemble with respect for the existing listed building," said Ortmann."We did not try to imitate the original design language of the building with the conversion. The new building's architectural language, both inside and out, clearly contrasts with the refurbished existing building without overpowering it."All spaces have been remodelled to maximise accessibilityCompleting the building is a forecourt in front of the main entrance in addition to a new access route for cars. A pedestrianised entrance route from the east connects with the city."By opening up the site area to the neighbouring streets and parks we wanted to reestablish the connection between the Alsterschwimmhalle and the surrounding urban areas," concluded Ortmann."The open spaces were made accessible to the public, with pathways provided across the site. In parts, these were redesigned using, where possible, salvaged and restored materials from the original design."A side extension contains another poolGMP was founded in 1965 by Meinhard von Gerkan and Volkwin Marg. Alsterschwimmhalle was shortlisted in the sustainable renovation category of the Dezeen Awards in 2024.Other restorations of landmark buildings featured on Dezeen include Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios' "invisible repair" of the world's first cast iron building and Chatillon Architectes revamp of the Grand Palais in Paris.The post GMP Architekten revamps "cityscape-defining" swimming pool in Hamburg appeared first on Dezeen.

Just hearing the word camping brings some sort of dread to me as this kind of adventure is definitely not for me. For one, I need a proper bathroom and also Im a slave to my creature comforts over a fantastic view of the outdoors. But over the years, glamping and luxury RV living have become a trend for people like me who cannot live without what hotels normally bring. Designer: RollAway HospitalityOne such company that is offering a luxurious RV suite is RollAWay Hospitality. Theyve converted the Brighdrop Zevo 600, an electric truck meant for the delivery market, into a for-hire electric RV that you can bring around to Californias coasts and National Parks. The 600 cubic feet of space inside the vehicle has become a suite on wheels and have even partnered with wellness brands to make it more luxurious. The RollAway camper has wood-lined interiors, a bed for two that can be turned into a dining and living room area, a kitchen and a full sized shower as well. Its complete with air conditioning, solar paneled rooftop, and even amenities from Malin+Goetz toiletries and camping gear from Yeti. Even breakfast materials will be provided by local sustainable farms. It also comes with a Starlink Satellite Wi-Fi and a dedicated hospitality app to take care of other housekeeping needs.Obviously, this luxury suite on wheels will cost you a pretty penny. But if you have the budget for it and you would like to experience aesthetic RV living but with creature comforts for a day or so, then this will probably be an option for you. Or you can just pitch a tent in a national park with a beautiful backdrop, but thats another thing altogether. The post RollAway Hospitality brings you aesthetic and luxurious RV living first appeared on Yanko Design.

Golden Wolf's creative director discusses his career-defining work and the animation studio's evolution.

Pejman Rajabi explains how his crew of expert artists put their own twist on a classic video game character

Prepare for a Gen Z takeover.