Jennifer Kushinka reporting...
Homes are flying off the market, as heavy demand combines with limited inventory. Nationwide, Zillow says home values continued their steady, upward path in June, growing 4.3% from a year ago. In New Orleans, prices rose 4.8%, to an average of $212,200. Phoenix is the hottest top-50 market, with home values up 9.6%, followed by Birmingham at 7.5%.
Demand for small-ship and river cruises are surging amid the pandemic, according to a recent survey of nearly 500 travel agents conducted by Scenic Group. More than 60 percent of travel advisors reported that river cruises account for 25-50 percent of all bookings while 75 percent see small-ship cruise bookings of 250 passengers or fewer growing to as much as 25 percent of their cruise business. While cruises and tours in North America lead the way for the rest of 2020, the survey finds a shift toward the Northern Europe and Arctic regions in 2021.
