Real Estate by the Numbers: Week of April 30

A quick rundown of the important real estate news from the week of April 30 – May 5, by the numbers:

34% – Respondents to a Reed Organization poll who use the internet to choose a real estate agent. Additionally, 42% say they first saw the home they ultimately purchased on the internet.

69% – Respondents to an April 2011 Gallup poll who believe it’s a good time to buy a house. The response is similar to those in the years preceding the previous housing boom.

1.4% – Increase in construction spending in March from February, according to the Commerce Department. “It was the biggest advance since last April and was helped by a rise in spending on home-improvement projects.”

$3.6 Billion – Investment amount Samsung Electronics is making on a new 2.3 million square foot factory in Austin, TX. The factory will make logic chips that will most likely go into Apple iPhones and iPads.

$2.4 Million – Listing price for the four-bedroom home used in the 1990 film “Home Alone.” The Georgian red-brick home is located north of Chicago.

$676 Million – Quarterly gain (January – March 2011) for mortgage giant Freddie Mac. It’s the first gain in nearly two years for the bailed out, McLean, VA based company. “The government-controlled company requested no additional federal aid Wednesday after receiving $13 billion over the past four quarters.”

4.71% – Average rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage. The rate is down from last week’s 4.78% average rate.

7.3% – Decrease in profits in the first quarter of 2011 for Spanish based banking giant BBVA. “The main reason behind the year-on-year decline was a 33.3 percent slide in Spanish profits to euro477 million.”

$20,000 – Monthly rental rate for Paris Hilton’s Hollywood Hill’s home. Paris purchased the 3,000 square foot home for $3.865 Million in 2007.

$128 Million – Amount Jones Lang LaSalle cut in energy costs by “going green.” “In addition to saving $128 million in energy costs annually, JLL has been leading on a number of green building standards.”

Note By BiggerPockets: These are opinions written by the author and do not necessarily represent the opinions of BiggerPockets.