What severe weather events are impacting the U.S. this weekend?
Live from NPR News, I'm Dale Willman. It's a bad weather weekend for much of the U.S. In California, the rains have slowed down, but the rising waters haven't.
I woke up at 8 a.m. with a phone call from my dad saying that the firefighters had just rescued him. And I said, from what? And he said, from two feet of water in my apartment.
That's Michelle Myers in Los Angeles. She says they had to go back later to rescue her dad's cats. In the Northeast, meanwhile, major snow is falling at this hour, and the governors of New York and New Jersey have declared states of emergency there as a major snowstorm slams into the region. Some areas have already seen as much as eight inches of snow, particularly in upstate New York.
Reporter Bruce Convisor has more from New York City.
The storm, sometimes referred to as an Alberta Clipper, has been gaining strength as it has swept across the country. As its arrival has neared, predicted snowfall accumulations across New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut have been inching upward. New York City is bracing for 5 to 9 inches. Even if just 5 inches falls, it would be the biggest snowstorm to fall on Central Park since 2022.
The states of emergency authorized state agencies to prepare for the storm and give the respective governors authority to make emergency declarations like reducing speed limits. The Clipper storm, which has gained strength from the atmospheric river pounding the Pacific coast, is expected to clear out of the region by Saturday morning. For NPR News, I'm Bruce Convisor in New York.
President Trump has said he'll take action to bring down high housing costs in 2026. But as NPR's Jennifer Ludden reports, economists expect prices to remain out of reach for many.
There are more home sellers than buyers. In fact, the gap has doubled from a year ago, according to a new analysis by Redfin. That normally brings prices down, and the real estate company does expect some sellers to keep cutting prices or offering concessions. but it notes many Americans simply cannot afford to buy a home, with prices up more than 50 percent since 2020.
Redfin also finds the number of both buyers and sellers down from a year ago due to high cost and economic uncertainty. Unemployment has been ticking up, and so have foreclosures. Economists say a severe housing shortage is a key factor keeping prices high, and fixing that would take years. Jennifer Ludden, NPR News, Washington.
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