MSNBC

Is NOW a good time to buy real estate? Depends on where you are.

The cool thing about covering retail and consumer spending is that I get to stories on industries like real estate. And... truth be told, for the past 6 months I'be been hunting around for a place to purchase here in NYC. To say it's been difficult is an understatement. More on that later (I promise) but for now, check out the segment I did for MSNBC's The Cycle on this subject. From my extensive research and first hand knowledge, I discovered the following: 1) It all depends on where you want to buy. 2) The housing market is in direct correlation with employment. 3) Currently the market seems to be indicating that people are buying and building. 4) People are purchasing in "trophy" cities like New York, Miami & LA. Chicago is not included on the list.

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Black Friday 2012 TV + Radio schedule

Whenever I have a TV or radio appearance the first thing I hear is this: "Why didn't you tell me? I would have tuned in!" This is mostly from family members who don't follow me on Twitter, Facebook, Pintrest + refuse to use e-mail or cell phones. So to make life easier (and to spare you the incessant twittering + facebook updates/calls/smoke signals asking you to tune in), here is my schedule of appearances for the week which is taken from my weekly email to a group of tech savvy close friends and family. I hope you get a chance to watch and as always feel free to join the Black Friday discussion by emailing me or sending me a note on Facebook/Twitter. Or better yet, go analog and CALL ME. Sheesh. Wednesday November 21nd @ 11:30 am ET on MSNBC: Pre-Black Friday- what you need to know, what numbers is the National Retail Federation expecting for online and offline sales AND what is going on with that Wal-mart labor dispute?

Thursday November 22nd @ 7:00am ET on MSNBC: Cyber Monday- with so many retailers trying to take market share away from Amazon, how much to online sales really count? What can we expect for post Black Friday?

Friday November 23rd @ 5:30 am ET on CBS WOR 710 AM talk radio: Black Friday? More like "Black Quarter." Why retailers feel the need to start promotions in October and will that help sales?

THEN @7:15 am ET on FOX 5 Good Day NY: Mobile shopping and Black Friday: The best apps to use while trolling through the stores.

AND RIGHT AFTER THAT HIT: @ 8:30 am ET on MSNBC: Black Friday- how much are "Fiscal Cliff" and Super Storm Sandy fallout going to have an impact on shopping and consumer sentiment looking forward?

Saturday November 24th @7:20 am ET and 1:20pm ET on MSNBC: "3 Big Money Headlines." Can you guess what we are going to talk about? Black Friday, housing starts and $AAPL stock volatility.