Heading home warms my heart and lifts my spirits

Whittier, Alaska, which is dominated by the Begich Building. (Photo by Jessica Spengler on Flickr)

When I moved from Manhattan to Phnom Penh toward the end of last year, most of my friends and family made clear their impression that I was heading to the least desirable outpost of the civilized world.

They were clearly wrong.

During my travels over the last month, I discovered Whittier, Alaska, which must rank on any list as one of mankind’s least hospitable municipalities.

The driver of the bus that dropped Lin and me at Anchorage Airport after a 90-minute drive from Whittier through a one-lane tunnel noted that the city began its life as

Weekly Roundup: Early spring, Borgnine mansion, slumping inventory, Case-Shiller attack, DIY tips, increasingly confident Americans, builders’ mood

Governor signs renewal of tax abatement into law

Construction permits take off from 2007 level

Market reveals early spring as pace of pending sales below $5 million is fastest in 12 years

And jump recorded in development activity of multi-family buildings in Brooklyn

Although nothing new, garbage disposals prove to be worthy of boasts

Cuomo seeking to buy out homeowners to remake coastline

Concessions dwindling for buyers of new condos

Will rents take off again?  Maybe: Low inventory continue to push up rents of studios, 2BR apartments last month

Region’s housing prices up 8.5 percent from prior December

Big uptick in supply seems unlikely

Her Greenwich Village duplex is coming around again

Late-night newswoman decamps to $5 million

Our northern neighbors seem to share our wishes

The news is hardly earth-shattering that what Canadians prefer in condos isn’t so different from buyers in the Lower 48.

But like folks in U.S., they have somewhat varied priorities, depending on where they live.

As reported in Realty Times, a survey by TD Canada Trust says good