Short List
City Life
Livability.com recently released its 2015 list of the Top 10 Best Downtowns, and Pittsburgh took the top spot due to its vibrant population of downtown residents, low vacancy rates, large number of new homeowners, walkable neighborhoods and many cultural amenities.
Similar to Pittsburgh, many cities that made Livabilitys list continue to grow in population. Most feature walkable streets and thriving art scenes. And as Americans are increasingly shortening their commute by living closer to their jobs, they will continue to seek out downtown areas as an ideal place to work, play and live.
The top 10 most livable small to mid-size downtowns in America are:
1. Houston
2. Orlando, Fla.
3. Las Vegas
4. Chicago
5. San Antonio
6. San Diego
7. Dallas
8. Sacramento, Calif.
9. Charlotte, N.C.
10. Phoenix
Source: Livability.com
Short List
All Lanes Now Open
The Federal Communications Commission approved regulations that will protect the Open Internet, commonly known as Net Neutrality. NAR supported adoption of these regulations that will be essential to ensure that REALTOR® content may be freely and efficiently distributed online, the association says.
The rules prohibit Internet service providers from creating what amounts to paid prioritization of Internet traffic in other words, fast lanes and slow lanes. In a statement, the FCC said: These new rules are guided by three principles: Americas broadband networks must be fast, fair and open principles shared by the overwhelming majority of the nearly 4 million commenters who participated in the FCCs Open Internet proceeding.
The FCC decision points out that as the Internet has evolved, broadband service providers have even more incentives to interfere with Internet openness today. The new rules prohibit blocking, throttling or prioritizing of broadband service.
We cannot have a two-tiered Internet with fast lanes that speed the traffic of the privileged and leave the rest of us lagging behind, FCC commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel said in a statement. We cannot have gatekeepers who tell us what we can and cannot do and where we can and cannot go online. And we do not need blocking, throttling and paid prioritization schemes that undermine the Internet as we know it.
The decision ensures that consumers can access video and other content on a REALTORS® website just as fast as they can access video on YouTube or Netflix.
NAR President Chris Polychron, CRS, said the new regulations are essential to the modern business of real estate that is increasingly conducted online.
NAR is pleased that the FCC will implement net neutral practices and prohibit paid prioritization, which would have created a two-tiered Internet and put REALTORS® and other small business owners at a competitive disadvantage, he said. The new rules are a victory for consumers, and for REALTORS® who embrace technology and online resources to meet the needs of their clients.
