Real Estate

While home sales in Rhode Island and the rest of Massachusetts surged in April, single-family sales in Bristol County, Mass. dropped 7 percent compared with the same period in 2011, The Warren Group said Tuesday. 10:02 am

Rhode Island home sales jumped 24 percent in April compared with the same period last year, the 10th consecutive month of increased year-over-year sales, the Rhode Island Association of Realtors said Tuesday. 9:37 am

It may be the best-kept secret in home real estate: For a couple of hundred dollars, a potential buyer thinking about writing a contract on an existing house can ask for a formal energy audit along with the standard inspection clause. That audit, in turn, can save the buyer thousands of dollars in future operating costs, and pinpoint the specific features of the house that need correction to improve efficiency. It might also be a tipoff to a sobering reality: This house is an energy guzzler. Either the asking price comes down, the seller fixes the problems, or I walk. May 19

Foreclosure filings in the Providence–New Bedford–Fall River area declined 29 percent in April compared with the same period in 2011, RealtyTrac said Thursday. May 17

Providence Mayor Angel Taveras has streamlined zoning regulations for the development of the Interstate 195 corridor as well as the city’s Knowledge District, Taveras announced Wednesday. May 16

Builder confidence in the market for newly built, single-family home reached 29 this month on the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index, the highest reading since May 2007, according to the National Association of Home Builders. May 15

The Plastics Group of America has entered into an agreement to purchase the Jules Desurmont Worsted Mill in order to add 240,000 square feet of space to its operations, the company announced late Monday. May 15

The Procaccianti Group is counting on upscale amenities and a hometown advantage to build 192 high-end rental apartments on a property in western Cranston that has confounded multifamily-development plans before. May 12

Rhode Island College breaks ground May 4 on a $17 million art-center renovation and expansion. From left: Tony Ventetoulo, chief operating officer, ABM Group; Steven DePasquale, president, Iron Construction Group; Mark Schatz, principal, Schwartz/Silver; RIC President Nancy Carriuolo; David Finney, president, Design Partnership of Cambridge; Gov. Lincoln D Chafee; William Gearhart, RIC vice president of administration and finance; Jane Sherman, member of the Board of Governors for Higher Education; William Martin, chair and professor of RIC art department and Stephen Fisher, RIC professor of art. May 12

When Providence hiked property taxes and slashed the exemption on multifamily homes in 2010, many apartment-building owners were blindsided by soaring tax bills that in many cases were double what they had once paid. May 12