Tucked between the Santa Ynez Mountains and the Pacific Ocean, Montecito on California’s coast offers a rare combination: natural beauty, privacy and enduring appeal to high-net-worth buyers. It’s where British royalty and Hollywood titans trade the rush of city life for ocean breezes and palatial estates. Nature defines the Montecito experience. Hiking trails wind through the foothills. White-sand beaches are minutes from nearly every doorstep. Mature landscaping and quiet streets reinforce the town’s idyllic, small-scale feel—even if the names on local property deeds read like a who’s-who of the entertainment world. Here, strict zoning laws limit overdevelopment, preserving the area’s…

For the New York real estate market, the first quarter came in like a lion and mostly just kept on roaring. New York, a reliably Democratic city, entered the year uncertain about how the re-election of Donald Trump would impact our market and markets in general. While many businesspeople and finance professionals expected a more pro-business environment, that has not exactly taken place. But even as the tariffs have come and gone and come again, and our mayor has been co-opted into co-operating with the immigration crackdown to obtain a Get-Out-Of-Jail-Free card, the residential real estate markets in Manhattan and…

“Scan your favorite newspapers or news websites this April 1, and chances are you’ll see some headlines that look suspicious. Read further, and you’ll probably find that some of those stories are complete hoaxes. After all, it’s April Fools’ Day,” comments the Library of Commerce Magazine on its blog. While the post dates the annual observance of trickery to Renaissance Europe, today’s hoaxes often use modern technology and mind games. And too often, the very unfunny outcomes harm homeowners, homebuyers and home sellers. Here are five of the latest home-home related scams. 1. Deed Fraud Criminals are impersonating property owners…

We’ve been going through the states of the Great Plains and analyzing what the most expensive ZIP codes are in each state there. We recently covered the most expensive ZIP codes in Kansas. Here, we’re moving west to Nebraska. Many housing markets across the United States witnessed a surge in homebuying activity in starting in the second year of the pandemic, 2021, which continued until rate hikes cooled things off a bit. Affordability issues are more pronounced. Nebraska saw its home values appreciate, but not at the pace of some of the other states and their ZIP codes have. Read…

While hiring interior designers for aesthetic medical offices is a growing trend, many other specialties haven’t really caught on. However, as holistic approaches become more popular for treating various types of illnesses, could elevated design become part of the process? Dr. Iris Kerin-Orbuch, MD—founder of Iris Wings Sanctuary for Endometriosis Surgery And Wellness, believes it is. She decided to take design to the next level when opening her new office in Beverly Hills, hiring interior designer Risa Daur to collaborate on a peaceful yet chic space. She tells me, “The cookie-cutter, impersonal nature of traditional medical offices has always been…

When it comes to selling real estate in any market, first impressions are absolutely crucial. In the age of killer content, buyers can scroll through listing images, floorplans, and details like they scroll through Instagram: an ever-refreshing feed. If your home doesn’t grab and keep attention immediately, it’s getting skipped and forgotten. This is where staging steps in, as it can transform a property from a “meh” to a “yay!” Jason Saft, founder of Staged to Sell Home, recently joined UrbanDigs’ podcast, Talking Manhattan LIVE!, to discuss how strategic staging can go beyond simply enhancing aesthetics to solving common roadblocks.…

This year, 8 in 10 Americans plan to participate in spring cleaning, according to Natalie D’Apolito, communications and outreach coordinator at the American Cleaning Institute. And 14% plan to clean more thoroughly than they did last year. “Spring cleaning is also a time to target areas in the home that tend to be overlooked in daily and weekly cleaning routines – in fact, the top areas Americans plan to tackle include floors/baseboards (80%), behind furniture (76%), storage spaces (75% – garage, attic, basement, shed, closets), and windows (75%),” she explains. And if you plan to sell your home this spring,…

The 2025 U.S. Houzz Kitchen Trends Study revealed an interesting appliance trend in its online survey of 1600 respondents, (conducted in July 2024 and released in January 2025). The popular platform is used by both professionals and homeowners for home remodeling and design solutions. Tucked into its latest findings was this nugget: “Specialty features drive oven preferences: Nearly two-thirds of homeowners choose ovens with specialty features (63%), including phone monitor controls (39%), remote timer activation (30%), control locks (30%), precise temperature control (25%) and automated cooking (22%).” Why does this matter? I believe that cooking appliances get closer than any…

In recent studies, we analyzed and identified the most expensive ZIP codes in a number of southern U.S. states, such as Mississippi, Tennessee, Louisiana, among others. For this article, we wanted to breakdown the most expensive ZIP codes in Alabama. Read on to find out the most expensive ZIP codes in Alabama in 2025, based on the latest data from Zillow’s home value index. The Most Expensive ZIP Codes in Alabama In order to identify the most expensive ZIP codes in each state, we turned to data from Zillow’s home value index, as well as the Census Bureau’s 2023 American…

Oftentimes breaking into one of the largest markets such as New York or Los Angeles requires time to learn the market and figure out how to penetrate it. In addition to understanding the real estate landscape, it can take a while to understand the drivers of the market. That said, if you have the Insider’s Edge, you can meet the right people and gain the inside track, which can sometimes be even more valuable in these markets. Understanding zoning regulations and tax abatement programs can also help you find opportunities. With that in mind, let’s talk about how to invest…