Plano is one of the safest cities in the U.S., national data shows rent prices are increasing, and Americans don’t know what to expect when it comes to closing costs, all in this week’s roundup of real estate news.

Plano Named One Of America’s Safest Cities

In this climate of school shootings and anthrax-laced greeting cards, it’s a high honor to be the No. 3 safest city in America. That’s just what Plano was deemed by personal-finance website WalletHub’s 2019 report.

“To determine where Americans can feel most protected against life’s hazards, including nonphysical forms of danger, WalletHub compared more than 180 U.S. cities across 41 key metrics,” said Diana Polk, a spokeswoman for WalletHub. “The data set ranges from assaults per capita to unemployment rate to road quality.”

The only places safer than Plano are Columbia, Md., and Yonkers, N.Y., according to the report. Others that made the list include Gilbert, Ariz., South Burlington, Vt., Virginia Beach, Va., Bismarck, N.D., Nashua, N.H., Chandler, Ariz., and Warwick, R.I.

Source: WalletHub

National Data Shows Rent Is On The Rise

Just as former New York mayoral and gubernatorial candidate Jimmy McMillan predicted in 2005 and 2009, “The rent is too damn high.”

McMillan even founded The Rent Is Too Damn High political party. While the humorous slogan got some attention directed to the monthly bills of New York renters, it is applicable in numerous other states, too, according to new data from Zumper.

The 2019 National Rent Report found that the highest median rent for a one-bedroom is in San Francisco, where rooms go for $3,490 a month. San Fran is followed by New York, Boston, Oakland, San Jose, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., Seattle, and San Diego. Miami is ranked No. 10 with a median of $1,710 monthly rent.

“Since it is well into slow-moving season, all of the top 10 cities experienced either a flat or downward monthly trend with Washington D.C. even moving down to seventh,” the report states. “In the rest of the nation, Minneapolis had the largest monthly growth rate, up 5.3 percent, while Virginia Beach saw the biggest decline, dropping 5.4 percent. Overall, the national one-bedroom rent dropped 0.9 percent to $1,230, while two bedrooms fell 1 percent to $1,465. On a year-to-date basis, one- and two-bedroom rents are up 1.8 percent and 1.7 percent respectively.”

Source: Zumper’s 2019 National Rent Report

Closing Costs Have Most Americans Confused

You mean I have to pay even more, on top of the $300,000-plus I just dropped for a new home?

Home buying isn’t a cheap endeavor, whether you’re seeking a multi-million-dollar mansion in Preston Hollow or a modest two-bedroom on the wrong side of the tracks. Confusion kicks in, however, when first-time buyers realize there may be hidden costs for which they had not budgeted.

Esurance surveyed 1,000 Americans to test their knowledge of closing costs and homeownership expenses, and found the following, according to senior content marketing specialist Karlie Kramer:

• Forty-four percent of respondents don’t know what to expect for closing costs.
• One in five expects to pay absolutely nothing in closing costs.
• Over half of 18- to 34-year-olds don’t know what to expect for homeownership costs.

Source: Esurance