James Rodriguez
Real Estate Correspondent
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James is a real estate correspondent on Business Insider's Discourse team. His pieces tackle the most fascinating storylines in real estate, helping readers make sense of an ever-shifting housing landscape.
His biggest stories have highlighted the challenges for millennial homebuyers , the stakes in the legal battle between Zillow and Compass , and changes in how buyers and sellers pay their agents .
He's also written about the rise of "accidental landlords," the end of casual house hunting , why big investors are buying stakes in Americans' homes , and the race to create the "Amazon of real estate."
He regularly appears on nationally syndicated radio, television, and podcasts, including This Morning with Gordon Deal, Marketplace , Vox's Explain It To Me , and CBS News . His coverage recently earned him the Kenneth R. Harney award for best consumer-education reporting from the National Association of Real Estate Editors.
Prior to joining Business Insider, James covered commercial and residential real estate for the Denver Business Journal. He is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin.
Articles by James Rodriguez
2026-06-24T08:23:01.235Z
Health-obsessed homebuyers are splurging on cold plunges, saunas, and cryotherapy chambers. Real estate's biggest flex isn't just for the uber-rich.
8 min read
2026-06-03T08:23:01.232Z
Overnight AI fortunes, multimillion-dollar bidding wars, and looming IPOs are rocking San Francisco real estate and sending home prices soaring.
13 min read
2026-05-13T08:24:01.233Z
Savvy tenants are scoring cheaper rent as landlords hustle to fill a heap of new apartment units. Renters' leverage won't last for long, though.
11 min read
2026-04-29T08:24:01.319Z
America's real estate market was set for a hot summer homebuying season. Then rising mortgage rates and the Iran war dashed everyone's hopes.
9 min read
2026-04-15T08:24:01.254Z
Soaring housing costs have put recent homebuyers at a steep disadvantage. The effects could warp America's real estate market for decades.
10 min read
2026-04-01T08:17:01.237Z
A growing web of fractional-ownership startups say they offer cheaper paths to homeownership. But not everyone is buying into their promises.
15 min read
Compass, America's biggest real estate broker, is declaring victory over Zillow as the home search giant tries a new tactic after listings ban.
7 min read
2026-03-18T08:23:01.232Z
Even homeowners with record-low mortgage rates now face staggering increases in often-overlooked fees, changing the calculus for millions of buyers.
10 min read
2026-03-01T09:23:01.233Z
At the hearing on "Bad Landlords," renters complained of junk fees, shoddy maintenance, and sky-high rents. It offered a preview of battles to come.
9 min read
2026-02-25T09:07:01.272Z
A shocking report last year said that homebuyers were older than ever. There's just one problem: Exclusive Redfin data tells a much different story.
9 min read
2026-02-10T09:13:01.226Z
The home-search giant can continue banning some real estate listings from its site, a judge ruled. Homebuyers still face a messy search process.
7 min read
2026-02-04T09:27:01.257Z
It's shaping up to be a banner year for Airbnb hosts near sports stadiums in World Cup cities. But not every homeowner will come out a winner.
10 min read
2026-01-28T09:33:01.253Z
Housing forecasters are expecting more buyers and sellers to make moves in 2026 after last year's false start. Here's why sales should soon pick up.
9 min read
Regular people can now gamble on real estate price thanks to Polymarket. It proves homes are no longer a place to live, but money-making machines.
9 min read
Robert Reffkin is one of real estate's most polarizing figures. Here's why the Compass CEO took on industry stalwarts Zillow and the NAR.
18 min read
From making real estate investing more attainable to developing 500-square-foot homes to fit in your backyard, here's why these rising stars of real estate are the ones to watch in 2025.
22 min read
2025-12-03T09:11:05.133Z
Landlords built mini-empires of rental homes using billions of dollars' worth of once-obscure DSCR loans. For some, the cash isn't flowing as planned.
12 min read
2025-11-05T09:27:01.275Z
First-time homebuyers are older than ever. Instead of millennials, the real estate market is seeing "geriatric homebuyers" with piles of cash.
8 min read
2025-10-22T08:34:01.267Z
The real estate market has split in two. Sunny winners of the work-from-home reshuffle, like Tampa, Phoenix, and Atlanta, are no longer on top.
13 min read
2025-10-08T08:07:01.282Z
Landlords are panicking over the latest real estate scam: using lease fraud to secure rentals. The con could make everyone's home search worse.
11 min read
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