Welcome to Edition 7.24 of the Rocket Report! This is the last Rocket Report of the year, and what a year it's been. So far, there have been 244 rocket launches to successfully reach orbit this year, a record for annual launch activity. And there are still a couple of weeks to go before the calendar turns to 2025. Time is running out for Blue Origin to launch its first heavy-lift New Glenn rocket this year, but if it flies before January 1, it will certainly be one of the top space stories of 2024.
As always, we welcome reader submissions. If you don't want to miss an issue, please subscribe using the box below (the form will not appear on AMP-enabled versions of the site). Each report will include information on small-, medium-, and heavy-lift rockets as well as a quick look ahead at the next three launches on the calendar.
Corkscrew in the sky. A Japanese space startup said its second attempt to launch a rocket carrying small satellites into orbit had been terminated minutes after liftoff Wednesday and destroyed itself again, nine months after the company’s first launch attempt in an explosion, the Associated Press reports. The startup that developed the rocket, named Space One, launched the Kairos rocket from a privately owned coastal spaceport in Japan's Kansai region. Company executive and space engineer Mamoru Endo said an abnormality in the first stage engine nozzle or its control system is likely to have caused an unstable flight of the rocket, which started spiraling in mid-flight and eventually destroyed itself about three minutes after liftoff, using its autonomous safety mechanism.
AI-powered search engine Perplexity has reportedly closed a $500 million funding round, valuing the startup at $9 billion. Bloomberg, citing sources familiar, reports that the round was led by Institutional Venture Partners and that it closed earlier in December. In an email to TechCrunch, a Perplexity spokesperson declined to comment. The mammoth tranche comes as […]
OpenAI’s transition away from a for-profit corporation that’s governed by a nonprofit board is well underway — and the nonprofit could be compensated royally for it. That’s according to The New York Times, which reports that OpenAI is in discussions to pay the nonprofit billions of dollars for it to cede control. There’s pressure to […]
The offers and details on this page may have updated or changed since the time of publication. See our article on Business Insider for current information.
You might be spending way less on overdraft fees soon thanks to a new CFPB rule.
Westend61/Getty Images
Overdraft fees can cost upwards of $40, which can be expensive when you're already low on cash.
A new CFPB rule could cap overdraft fees to $5 for very large institutions starting next October.
If you don't want to wait until then, there are steps you can take to avoid overdraft fees now.
Overdraft fees can be a huge financial burden when you're already struggling to make ends meet. The best banks for avoiding overdrafts don't charge overdraft fees at all, but it's more common for banks to charge overdraft fees in the $20 to $40 range.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau recently finalized a rule that would limit large financial institutions — institutions that have $10 billion or more in assets — from charging high overdraft fees. The rule is expected to take effect on October 1, 2025, but that might change if Congress decides to overturn it.
If you have a checking account with a large national bank or credit union, this rule could likely affect you. Here's what you can expect to change and what you should do to take advantage of lower overdraft fees.
Who would be affected by the CFPB overdraft final rule?
The CFPB only has authority over very large financial institutions, which it defines as those with more than $10 billion in total assets. According to the CFPB Depository Institutions list, which uses data from Q3 2024, a little under 180 banks and credit unions meet those criteria.
The most commonly used banks and credit unions, such as Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Ally Bank, and Navy Federal Credit Union, are on this list. A few of those financial institutions, like Ally, have already eliminated overdraft fees.
Financial institutions on the list that haven't eliminated overdraft fees have a couple of other options if they don't want to cap overdraft fees at $5. They can prove to the CFPB that they aren't making a profit on the overdraft fees they charge, which will likely be a more complicated process than just capping their fees. They could instead treat overdrafts like other consumer credit options, which include consumer loans and credit cards. Consumer credit options are more strictly regulated than overdrafts are now.
But if you use one of the CFPB's listed banks and it still charges overdraft fees, this rule would almost certainly lower what you pay for overdrafts — if it goes through.
"I would expect to see litigation from the banking industry, as well as the potential for political changes with a new administration or a new Congress starting in January," says Patrick O'Leary, CFP® professional, Sr. Vice President and financial advisor at O'Leary Wealth Management with D.A. Davidson and Co.
But even if the rule doesn't go through, it could still have an indirect impact on overdraft fees. "Even if it doesn't go into effect as it's written now, I think the continued pressure on banks, from both a regulatory perspective as well as from the public, is likely to push these fees lower in many instances," says O'Leary.
The CFPB estimates that the rule will save consumers $5.2 billion dollars each year. Low-income consumers are the ones who will save most if the rule is passed.
"The CFPB is trying to limit the impact and the cost to consumers, especially lower-income consumers," says O'Leary.
What you can do to take advantage of the new overdraft cap
If you find yourself overdrafting your checking account frequently, you might want to take advantage of this rule. To do that, just make sure your primary checking account is from one of the financial institutions listed on the CFPB website. Most of the banks that made our list of best banks are large enough to be covered by the CFPB.
If you don't want to wait until next October to lower your overdraft fees, we've provided a list of some of the best checking accounts for overdraft below. All of these accounts are overdraft fee-free, and some of them have other perks, such as being high-yield checking accounts.
While this rule would help you avoid high overdraft fees, there are ways you can lower the impact of overdraft fees on your budget regardless of whether the rule goes through.
If you find yourself facing surprise overdraft fees, calling your bank might help lower your costs. "Call your bank and speak to them. Let them know what has happened. A lot of times, they will waive some or all of those fees," says Angela Moore, CFP® professional, founder of Modern Money Education.
If you want to avoid overdrafts entirely, there are a few ways to accomplish that. "One thing you can do is you can call your bank and tell them that you do not want overdraft options on your account," says Moore. This will make it so any transactions that would take your account into the negative would automatically decline.
"Another option you could do is always keep a cushion in your account. If you typically spend $5,000 a month, maybe you keep an extra $2,000 in your checking account as a cushion," says Moore.
She also says that signing up for overdraft transfers, which lets you automatically transfer money from your savings to cover overdrafts, could help avoid heavy overdraft fees. Some banks charge fees for overdraft transfers, but they're generally lower than overdraft fees. Additionally, O'Leary says that the new CFPB rule also applies to overdraft transfer fees.
Welcome to Edition 7.23 of the Rocket Report! We're closing in on the end of the year, with a little less than three weeks remaining in 2024. Can you believe it? I hardly can. The biggest question left in launch is whether Blue Origin will make its deadline for launching New Glenn by the end of this year. It's been a long-time goal of founder Jeff Bezos, but the clock is ticking. We wish them luck!
As always, we welcome reader submissions, and if you don't want to miss an issue, please subscribe using the box below (the form will not appear on AMP-enabled versions of the site). Each report will include information on small-, medium-, and heavy-lift rockets as well as a quick look ahead at the next three launches on the calendar.
Virgin Galactic studies Italian spaceport. The US-based suborbital space tourism company said Thursday it has signed an "agreement of cooperation" with Italy's civil aviation authority to study the feasibility of Virgin Galactic conducting spaceflight operations from Grottaglie Spaceport in the Puglia region of Southern Italy. Phase one of the study, anticipated to be completed in 2025, will examine Grottaglie’s airspace compatibility with Virgin Galactic’s requirements and unique flight profile.
Welcome to Edition 7.22 of the Rocket Report! The big news is the Trump administration's announcement that commercial astronaut Jared Isaacman would be put forward as the nominee to serve as the next NASA Administrator. Isaacman has flown to space twice, and demonstrated that he takes spaceflight seriously. More background on Isaacman, and possible changes, can be found here.
As always, we welcome reader submissions, and if you don't want to miss an issue, please subscribe using the box below (the form will not appear on AMP-enabled versions of the site). Each report will include information on small-, medium-, and heavy-lift rockets as well as a quick look ahead at the next three launches on the calendar.
Orbex pauses launch site work in Sutherland, Scotland. Small-launch vehicle developer Orbex will halt work on its own launch site in northern Scotland and instead use a rival facility in the Shetland Islands, Space News reports. Orbex announced December 4 that it would "pause" construction of Sutherland Spaceport in Scotland and instead use the SaxaVord Spaceport on the island of Unst in the Shetlands for its Prime launch vehicle. Orbex had been linked to Spaceport Sutherland since the UK Space Agency announced in 2018 it selected the site for a vertical launch complex.
Austin made the list of one of the best places to live in 2024.
Brandon Bell/Getty Images
US News & World Report created a list of the best places to live in the US in 2024.
Factors such as housing affordability, job opportunities, and quality of life determined the list.
Naples, Florida, tops 2024's list, followed by Boise, Idaho, and Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Deciding where to live isn't always easy.
Some people move multiple times in a decade, searching for new experiences or better opportunities. Others end up regretting relocating to their new homes.
Every year, US News & World Report ranks 150 big cities based on factors including quality of life, schools, crime rates, employment opportunities, and housing affordability to find the best places to live in the United States.
For 2024's list, the South and the Midwest have the most cities ranked in the top 15.
Booming Boise, Idaho; outdoorsy Colorado Springs, Colorado; and the bustling banking hub of Charlotte, North Carolina, all consistently make the list of the best places to live. Newcomers include Austin, a growing tech hub, and two scenic South Carolina locales: Greenville and Charleston.
In addition to weighing job opportunities and housing costs, US News & World Report emphasizes each area's overall standard of living.
Here are the 15 best places to live in the US, according to US News & World Report. Residents find plenty to like about these cities, including relatively affordable homes, plenty of jobs, and lots of ways to spend their free time.
15. Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington, Kentucky.
Getty Images
Population of the metro area: 320,154
Median home price: $331,000
Median monthly rent: $1,600
Median household income: $66,392
Climate Vulnerability Index: 58th percentile (average vulnerability). This index shows areas of the US most likely to face challenges from climate change.
Known for: Home to over 450 horse farms, Lexington is known as the horse capital of the world. While it doesn't have the Kentucky Derby, Keeneland Race Track holds its own horse races twice a year.
Known for: Wisconsin's capital is also the state's second-largest city. Madison is a college town, offering plenty of chances to see concerts and sporting events.
Known for: With its cobblestone streets and 18th- and 19th-century buildings, Charleston is a dream for historic-architecture buffs. Plus, miles of beachy coastline are just a short trip from downtown.
Known for: Wisconsin's oldest city is home to the Green Bay Packers, a storied NFL team. Nature lovers can make the most of Green Bay's 25-mile Fox River State Trail, even in the winter.
Known for: Sarasota earned the nickname the Circus City because Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus moved its winter quarters to the beachy town in 1927. These days, the weather, leisurely pace of life, and lack of income tax all attract people to Florida. Sarasota, in particular, has become a magnet for workers, according to a January LinkedIn report.
Known for: Not far from the Rocky Mountains, Boulder is known for outdoorsy activities, including rock climbing, hiking, skiing, and cycling. The city's median age is 28.6, giving it a youthful, lively energy.
Known for: An artsy, contemporary city, Austin is known for its vibrant nightlife, live music, eclectic cuisine, and college scene. It also has a long history of attracting tech giants, and even more companies have opened offices there since the pandemic. West Coasters in the industry have moved to the city, lured by the booming job market and comparatively low cost of living.
Known for: Boasting a beloved boardwalk, Virginia Beach has miles of beaches, delectable seafood, and a mild climate. Murals, museums, and shops in the ViBe Creative District give the seaside destination some arty flair, too.
Known for: Since the start of the US space program in the 1950s Huntsville has been a hub for the aerospace and defense industries. Today it's bursting with startups, alongside long-standing workplaces like NASA and Boeing. Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin also has a facility for building rocket engines in Huntsville.
Known for: This capital city has a busy downtown, free museums, and miles of hiking trails. Part of North Carolina's Research Triangle, Raleigh has a long history of fostering technology and science companies, creating a strong local economy.
Known for: Second only to New York, Charlotte is a bustling banking hub. Locals can root for the city's professional basketball, football, and soccer teams or soak up the art and food scenes.
Known for: In the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, Greenville attracts new residents with its moderate climate, burgeoning food reputation, and natural beauty. Greenville is also home to several major corporations, including Michelin, GE, and Lockheed Martin.
Known for: The US Olympic and Paralympic Training Center is located in Colorado Springs, making the city especially attractive to athletes. There are hundreds of miles of trails for hiking and mountain biking, and white water rafting is a popular summer activity. From the Garden of the Gods to the iconic Pikes Peak, gorgeous natural sights adorn the area.
Known for: Thousands of new residents flocked to Idaho's capital in the past decade, making it the US's fastest-growing city in 2018. Boise blends sought-after amenities such as microbreweries and cider houses with nearby scenic state parks full of rivers, canyons, and mountains.
Known for: Located on Florida's Gulf Coast, Naples is like a postcard come to life, with white-sand beaches, luxurious residences, and over 1,350 holes of golf. The city has long attracted wealthy residents who can afford the high housing costs. Right now a $295 million compound is up for grabs, the most expensive home for sale in the US.
Sources: Population and income data are from the US Census, median home price from Realtor.com, median rent from Zillow, and climate information from the Climate Vulnerability Index.
This story was originally published on May 15, 2024, and most recently updated on December 4.
Florida is home to some of the hottest housing markets in the US.
Courtesy of the Blankenship Group
Housing market activity should rebound in the year ahead as mortgage rates fall.
Buyers have been waiting for more affordable rates, as have sellers.
Here are 16 cities set for double-digit property price growth, as forecasted by Realtor.com.
Homeowners and buyers may finally start making more dealsin 2025, which could lift prices in some markets to unprecedented heights.
A years-long slump in home sales could end soon as mortgage rates fall below 6% and home inventory grows, Leo Pareja, the CEO of real-estate brokerage giant eXp Realty, said in a recent interview.
Pareja, who described his year-ahead housing market outlook as "cautiously optimistic," thinks home sales will rise 10% in 2025. That's far above Realtor.com's recent call for 1.5% sales growth due to a slight slide in mortgage rates.
If more homes come on the market and housing demand also rises, sales would certainly follow suit, though it's less clear what would happen to home prices. Realtor.com is predicting nationwide home prices climb to 3.7% — in line with the rate they've risen since 2012.
Realtor.com forecasted price and sales growth for the 100 largest US real-estate markets. Florida is home to nine of the 25 places expected to see the most price appreciation in 2025.
Below are the 16 metropolitan areas that are set for double-digit home price growth next year, based on Realtor.com's projections. The Sunshine State dominates the list with five names and a near miss with Jacksonville, which is seen rising 9.8%. Sales growth estimates are also listed.
1. Phoenix, Arizona
Kruck20/Getty Images
2025 price growth estimate: 13.2%
2025 sales growth estimate: 12.2%
Source: Realtor.com
2. Colorado Springs, Colorado
Kit Leong/Shutterstock
2025 price growth estimate: 12.7%
2025 sales growth estimate: 27.1%
Source: Realtor.com
3. Tucson, Arizona
Danny Lehman/Getty Images
2025 price growth estimate: 12.4%
2025 sales growth estimate: 12.5%
Source: Realtor.com
4. Boise City, Idaho
Boise, Idaho.
CSNafzger/Shutterstock
2025 price growth estimate: 12.3%
2025 sales growth estimate: 2%
Source: Realtor.com
5. Las Vegas, Nevada
las vegas
Lucky-photographer/Shutterstock
2025 price growth estimate: 12.3%
2025 sales growth estimate: 5.5%
Source: Realtor.com
6. Orlando, Florida
Smithlandia Media/Getty Images
2025 price growth estimate: 12.1%
2025 sales growth estimate: 15.2%
Source: Realtor.com
7. Ogden, Utah
Ogden, Utah.
mandicoleman.com/Getty Images
2025 price growth estimate: 11.8%
2025 sales growth estimate: 2.2%
Source: Realtor.com
8. Tampa, Florida
Sean Pavone/Shutterstock
2025 price growth estimate: 11.8%
2025 sales growth estimate: 9.1%
Source: Realtor.com
9. Deltona/Daytona Beach, Florida
Deltona, Florida along the north shore of Lake Monroe
Javier_Art_Photography/Getty Images
2025 price growth estimate: 11.5%
2025 sales growth estimate: 7.2%
Source: Realtor.com
10. Memphis, Tennessee
Dukas/Christian Heeb/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
2025 price growth estimate: 10.5%
2025 sales growth estimate: 8.3%
Source: Realtor.com
11. Sarasota, Florida
Sean Pavone/Shutterstock
2025 price growth estimate: 10.4%
2025 sales growth estimate: 3.2%
Source: Realtor.com
12. Lakeland, Florida
Sean Pavone/Getty Images
2025 price growth estimate: 10.3%
2025 sales growth estimate: 10.6%
Source: Realtor.com
13. Atlanta, Georgia
Sean Pavone / Getty Images
2025 price growth estimate: 10.2%
2025 sales growth estimate: 15.1%
Source: Realtor.com
14. Austin, Texas
austin
Little Vignettes Photo/Shutterstock
2025 price growth estimate: 10.2%
2025 sales growth estimate: 14.5%
Source: Realtor.com
15. Durham, North Carolina
Sean Pavone/Shutterstock
2025 price growth estimate: 10.1%
2025 sales growth estimate: 14.1%
Source: Realtor.com
16. San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio is one of the most populated cities in the US, which Abbamonte doesn't understand.
Home prices in 2025 should appreciate slowly but steadily, Realtor.com said.
Art Wager/Getty Images
Realtor.com just unveiled its 2025 housing market outlook.
Home values should rise slightly next year as property sales pick up due to lower mortgage rates.
However, rent should stay in check due to a massive influx of apartment inventory.
Property owners, prospective buyers, renters, and landlords should expect more of the same in the new year — for the most part.
Home sales and the cost of buying or renting won't be much different in 2025, Realtor.com said in its housing forecast published on December 4. The firm's researchers see sales inching 1.5% higher while home prices climb 3.7% — in line with the rate they've risen since 2012 — and rent stays roughly flat at -0.1%. Mortgage rates should also slide slightly, though they'll stay north of 6%.
Those modestly positive projections are based on what Realtor.com expects to be a healthy economic backdrop typified by lower interest rates and steady growth. The Federal Reserve will likely cut rates in December and then a few more times in the first half of the year, the firm said.
"Prices are going to keep rising because we're not going to have a recession," said Ralph McLaughlin, a senior economist at Realtor.com, in an interview with Business Insider ahead of the report's release. "If you look at the times that home prices fall, it's typically only when there's a recession, and only when people are forced to sell."
In addition, it's unclear how President-elect Donald Trump's policies will affect the US housing market, though stock market strategists generally agree that tax cuts and deregulation will boost business confidence. McLaughlin thinks that may have a trickle-down effect for homebuyers.
"If you're talking about the resale market, the existing homes market, it's hard not to become optimistic about just the broader economy, because of things like tax cuts and other benefits to households that might put more money in their pocket at the end of the day," McLaughlin said. He added: "That might encourage them to go out and either buy a home, if they don't currently own one — or grade up to a house maybe they've been waiting to over the last few years."
High on supply
While that backdrop mostly represents business-as-usual, next year's housing market may be marked by a significant development: sizable increases in home and apartment supply.
A long-running home shortage is finally easing, as Realtor.com predicts that 2025 will be the first "balanced" housing market in nine years, meaning neither buyers nor sellers will have disproportionate leverage. That's thanks to an 11.7% jump in existing home inventory and a 13.8% surge in single-family home starts.
Home listings have been on the rise recently in most of the 50 largest US real-estate markets, which defies what Realtor.com had thought would be a big drop in inventory this year. However, there's still a shortfall of 3.7 million homes in the US, Freddie Mac estimates.
Realtor.com
Continued supply improvements mean there should be 4.1 months of homes available in 2025, up from 3.7 months now, Realtor.com said. The National Association of Realtors, a competing firm, reported last month that there's already 4.2 months' supply of existing homes available.
Rental inventory is also on the rise, as real-estate site Zumper found that the supply of new apartments in the US hit its highest level in five decades this summer.
That dynamic should cause rent growth to stall, McLaughlin said. Home prices likely won't suffer a similar fate, in his view, because single-family supply will come online slower.
"What we've seen over the past couple years is a large uptick in new multi-family construction, and they tend to be released all at once," McLaughlin said. "And so it can have very sharp and especially isolated impacts on rents — in particular — in urban areas where they are built."
With more options, renters won't be forced to endure the abnormally large rent hikes that became more common during and after the pandemic.
Landlords might also struggle to raise rent substantially in a strong economy with lower mortgage rates since renters could walk away from bidding wars and look at houses instead.
"When incomes grow enough in the rental segment, those renters tend to convert over to owners," McLaughlin said. "They typically won't use their incomes to bid up rents more — they'll just go and, if they can afford it, they'll go buy a house."
McLaughlin continued: "So those that continue to stay renting, landlords don't have the ability necessarily to raise rents at the rates that price growth plays out in most markets."
Still, inventory increases likely won't translate to meaningful discounts on homes or rental units. Prices almost always rise over time along with the population size and money supply, so while apartments may be easier to find, those pining for pre-pandemic prices could be disappointed — even in an otherwise solid year.
Welcome to Edition 7.21 of the Rocket Report! We're publishing the Rocket Report a little early this week due to the Thanksgiving holiday in the United States. We don't expect any Thanksgiving rocket launches this year, but still, there's a lot to cover from the last six days. It seems like we've seen the last flight of the year by SpaceX's Starship rocket. A NASA filing with the Federal Aviation Administration requests approval to fly an aircraft near the reentry corridor over the Indian Ocean for the next Starship test flight. The application suggests the target launch date is January 11, 2025.
As always, we welcome reader submissions. If you don't want to miss an issue, please subscribe using the box below (the form will not appear on AMP-enabled versions of the site). Each report will include information on small-, medium-, and heavy-lift rockets as well as a quick look ahead at the next three launches on the calendar.
Another grim first in Ukraine. For the first time in warfare, Russia launched an Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile against a target in Ukraine, Ars reports. This attack on November 21 followed an announcement from Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier the same week that the country would change its policy for employing nuclear weapons in conflict. The IRBM, named Oreshnik, is the longest-range weapon ever used in combat in Europe and could be refitted to carry nuclear warheads on future strikes.
The FTC has launched an antitrust investigation into Microsoft, according to multiple reports that corroborate earlier reporting by the Financial Times. The agency is said to be looking into whether Microsoft violated antitrust law in multiple segments of its business, including its public cloud, AI, and cybersecurity product lines. Of particular interest to the FTC […]
Elon Musk’s AI company, xAI, is reportedly preparing to release a stand-alone consumer app. That’s according to The Wall Street Journal, which reports that the upcoming app will be similar to OpenAI’s ChatGPT, allowing users to access xAI’s Grok chatbot from their personal devices. The app will likely arrive after xAI closes its next funding […]
Welcome to Edition 7.20 of the Rocket Report! This is a super-long version of the newsletter because we did not publish last week, and there is just a ton of launch news of late. Also, I want to note that next week's report will appear a day early, on Wednesday, due to the Thanksgiving holiday. Speaking of which, you all have our thanks for reading and sharing the Rocket Report with others.
On a completely unrelated note, Rocket Lab has had some amazing mission names over the years. But this weekend's "Ice AIS Baby" launch is probably the best. I always appreciate their effort to find non-vanilla names and find a way to stop, collaborate, and listen.
Please subscribe using the box below (the form will not appear on AMP-enabled versions of the site). Each report will include information on small-, medium-, and heavy-lift rockets as well as a quick look ahead at the next three launches on the calendar.
