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Rents for single-family homes rose 10.2% nationally, while gasoline prices soar as California reaches an all-time high; plus stories on Subway tuna, mega-spider found that can bite through fingernails, and more top stories.
Rents for single-family homes rose 10.2% nationally on average in September year over year, CNBC reports. By comparison, rents only increased by 2.6% in September of last year, according to a new report from CoreLogic. Contributing factors are improving job growth, as well as rocketing prices on for-sale homes, which are adding to the already high demand for single-family renters. Strong competition and low inventory in the buying market is forcing more potential buyers to remain as renters. Vacancy rates are near 25-year lows.
The Wall Street Journal reported that most homes are selling within a week.
The 10% average rent cost varies among price ranges. Lower-priced rentals climbed 8.3%, lower-middle priced are up 9.3%, higher-middle priced are up 10.5%, and higher-priced are up 11%.
The priciest locations are Miami, up 25.7%, followed by Phoenix at 19.8%, and Las Vegas at 15.9%. Prices are also spiking in Austin and San Diego within the top five.
The lowest rent growth cities, at under 5%, are in Chicago, Boston, Philadelphia, Washington D.C., and the New York City metropolitan area.
As of this writing, the national average for a gallon of unleaded regular was $3.411, according to the AAA gas price tracker.
California had the highest price in the nation at $4.687 per gallon. Hawaii was the only other state with gasoline at or above four dollars, coming in at $4.325.
CNN Business reported on California’s gas price: “Monday’s price for regular unleaded was six-tenths of a cent higher than the Sunday average reported by AAA, which broke the all-time record of $4.671 previously set in October 2012.”
However, prices are nearing $5 in some areas, including Humboldt County in Northern California, where the average price was $4.97 on Monday, as the Bay Area as a whole is over $4.85, a spokesperson for AAA said.
Subway is seeking to dismiss a new lawsuit it calls “reckless and improper,” which alleges its tuna products don’t have the advertised “100% tuna,” and instead contain other meats. The lawsuit claims DNA testing shows that, in 19 samples, Subway’s tuna had “no detectable tuna DNA sequences” while 20 samples contained chicken DNA, 11 also contained pork DNA, and 7 contained cattle DNA, NBC reported. An amended complaint says Subway’s tuna sandwiches, wraps, and salads are “bereft” of tuna, and not the 100% sustainably caught skipjack and yellowfin tuna as the company proclaims as “high quality, wild caught, 100% tuna.”
This is what nightmares are made of… A spider was found measuring 3.15 inches, compared to the normal 0.4-1.18 inches of your average spider. Even scarier, it has fangs around three-quarters of an inch in length capable of biting through a human fingernail. The spider is known as a funnel spider and was found in Australia, Fox 8 reports. The Australian Reptile Park is encouraging the public to safely catch the spiders and turn them in for its antivenom program. The spiders are milked for their venom, then released. The creation of antivenom saves around 300 lives per year.
In the American southwest, particularly Arizona, blonde tarantulas average around 3-4 inches. They possess fangs and are venomous, but do not bite unless seriously provoked, according to the University of Arizona, which says there are no records of serious harm to humans resulting from tarantula bites.
