Like many young professionals, 31-year-old Brittany Pitcher thought her dream of homeownership would never quite line up with the reality of her financial outlook.

Pitcher, an attorney in Tacoma, Washington, earns a good salary, but a large chunk of her take-home pay goes toward paying down her debt from law school, not leaving much room to save for her dream home — especially when most experts recommend coming up with at least a 20 percent down payment.

"With my law school student loans, I could have never saved 20 percent down for a house," Pitcher told MagnifyMoney. "Twenty percent is an outrageous amount of money to save."

But Pitcher managed to find a more affordable solution, and in 2015 she was able to purchase her dream home for $0 down.

Here's how she did it:

A loan officer suggested Pitcher look into securing a grant from the National Homebuyers Fund (NHF), a Sacramento, Calif.-based nonprofit that works with a network of lenders nationwide to make the home-buying process more affordable, offering assistance for down payments, closing costs, mortgage tax credits and more. She applied and was awarded an $8,000 grant, which covered her down payment and closing costs.

Each lender that works with the NHF to offer downpayment assistance has different eligibility requirements for borrowers. In Pitcher's case, she had to earn less than $85,000 annually to qualify for the grant. She also had to take an online class driving home the importance of paying her mortgage.

There were other stipulations, too. She was required to use a specific lender and agree to a Federal Housing Administration mortgage with a rate of 4.5%. Since FHA mortgage loans require only a 3.5 percent down payment, the grant fully covered her down payment.

But like all FHA mortgage holders, Pitcher soon learned there was a price to pay for such a low down payment requirement — she had to pay a monthly mortgage insurance premium (MIP) on top of her mortgage payment, which added an additional $112 per month.

With the grant, Pitcher successfully purchased her first home in 2015, trading up from a one-bedroom rental to a three-bedroom house. And even with the added cost of MIP, her monthly mortgage payment was still roughly $100 less than what she would pay if she continued renting in the area.

"When I bought my house, with my student loans, my net worth was like negative $120,000 or something horrible like that," says Pitcher. "Now my house has appreciated enough to where my net worth is only negative $60,000. It's been an incredible investment that's totally paid off."

After she moved into her home, she came up with a strategy that would ultimately get rid of her MIP and secure a lower interest rate. Within a year, her house had increased in value enough for her to refinance out of the FHA loan and into a conventional loan, which both lowered her interest rate and eliminated her mortgage insurance premium.

Pitcher's experience highlights how the 20 percent down payment rule of thumb might actually be more myth than a hard-and-fast rule.

"Historically, the typical first-time homebuyer has always put less than 20 percent down," says Jessica Lautz, Managing Director of Survey Research and Communications for the National Association of Realtors (NAR).

According to NAR's 2016 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers report, the typical down payment for a first-time homebuyer has been 6 percent for the last three years.

How to get a house with a low down payment

There are plenty of programs out there that can help first-time homebuyers get approved for a mortgage without needing a 20 percent down payment.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, for example, has a tool where homebuyers can search for programs local to their area.

"There might be programs there that first-time homebuyers could qualify for that either allow them to put down a lower down payment or help them with a tax credit in their local community, or even property taxes for the first couple of years after purchasing the home," Lautz says. "Those programs are available. It's just a matter of finding them."

Case in point: Maine's First Home Program provides low, fixed-rate mortgages that require a small, or sometimes zero, down payment. Similarly, the Massachusetts Housing Partnership, a public nonprofit, boasts its ONE Mortgage Program. The initiative offers qualified homebuyers low down payments with no private mortgage insurance.

Generally speaking, where low- or no-down-payment loans are concerned, potential homebuyers have a number of options. An FHA mortgage loan, funded by an approved lender, is perhaps the most popular. Folks whose credit scores are 580 or above can qualify for a 3.5 percent down payment. That number goes up to 10 percent for people with a lower credit score. The catch is that you'll have to pay an upfront insurance premium of 1.75 percent of the loan amount along with closing costs.

Veterans, active-duty service members, and military families may also be eligible for a VA loan, which comes without the burden of mortgage insurance. They do charge a one-time funding fee, but no down payment is required, and the rates are attractive.

Christina Noone, 34, and her husband Eric, 33, bought their first home in Canadensis, Pa., in 2011 with a USDA loan. USDA home loans are backed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The couple put 0 percent down for a $65,000 loan with no private mortgage insurance requirement.

"Putting money down makes your payments lower, but this specific type of loan, designed for rural areas, is manageable," Christina says of their $650 monthly payment, which includes their mortgage and taxes. "I might have liked to wait until we had money to put down so we could have bought a nicer house for the same payments, but with zero down, we were able to get into a house easily."

The biggest downside for Eric and Christina, who own a local restaurant, is that their house is "a big fixer-upper," something the couple hasn't financially been able to tackle yet. This is precisely why Steven Podnos, M.D., a Certified Financial Planner and CFP Board Ambassador, stresses the importance of having a three- to six-month emergency fund before buying a house — especially since putting down less than 20 percent often necessitates paying for private mortgage insurance. He also suggests keeping your overall housing costs under 30 percent of your income. When it comes to finding a lender, he adds that shopping around is in your best interest.

"It's a competitive process," he says. "I always tell people: get more than one offer. Go to more than one institution because different banks at different times have different standards, different amounts of money they're willing to lend, and different risks they're willing to take."

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Earlier this year, a Bay Area couple shook up a private cul-de-sac when it was revealed that the immigrant real-estate speculators bought the street for $90,000 without the knowledge of its wealthy residents.

Now, the residents of Presidio Terrace are assembling a legal A-team to win their street back, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

Presidio Terrace is a block-long street and private development that has been run by the homeowners who live there since at least 1905, according to the Chronicle. It has attracted some of the wealthiest and most powerful politicians in California over the years, including Sen. Diane Feinstein and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi.

It's located in a less-trafficked area at the top of the San Francisco Peninsula and has around-the-clock private security at the entrance. There are 35 mega-mansions on Presidio Terrace.

In 2015, an unpaid tax bill caused the City of San Francisco to put Presidio Terrace up for sale in a private auction. Tina Lam, an engineer in Silicon Valley, and Michael Cheng, a realtor, scooped up the street, its sidewalks, and other "common ground" for $90,000. They told the Chronicle they want to charge residents rent for parking on the street.

Residents are up in arms. The homeowners association has sued the couple and the city. It wants the San Francisco Board of Supervisors to rescind the sale — an unprecedented move.

On September 11, the Chronicle reported that the Presidio Terrace Homeowners Association has hired a team of legal bigwigs to lead the pursuit, including a former assistant city attorney, Scott Emblidge; a former spokesperson for the city attorney's office, Matt Dorsey; and a onetime chief of staff for former Supervisor Bevan Dufty, Boe Hayward.

The group has a hearing on the legality of the sale scheduled for November 28.

Cheng, one of the buyers, told the Chronicle he wasn't worried.

"I feel sure that we are on sound legal footing," Cheng said.

SEE ALSO: This little-known San Francisco neighborhood is suddenly one of the hottest housing markets in America — take a look

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Fashion designer Tommy Hilfiger has dropped the price of his Plaza Hotel penthouse yet again, this time to $50 million, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The 5,600-square-foot duplex has been on and off the market since 2013, when Hilfiger and his wife, Dee Ocleppo, first listed it for $80 million. At the time, that price made it one of the most expensive homes on the market in America.

It was later dropped to $75 million, then to $68.95 million, and then to $58.9 million before it fell off the market in April. It's now back, having switched realtors again.

The condo is located on the 18th and 19th floors of the Plaza and has four bedrooms with views of Central Park and Fifth Avenue.

Hilfiger and his wife bought two separate units in the hotel for $25.5 million in 2008, combining them in an extensive renovation. At one point that year, Hilfiger seemed to have second thoughts and tried to unload the apartment mid-renovation, marketing it as a "fixer-upper" for $50 million, the same price it's currently listed for.

"I had a couple of offers on it which didn't come through. One I didn't accept and the other the guy didn't come up with the money," Hilfiger told the WSJ. "I'm of the belief that if it sells, it sells. If it doesn't sell, I'll just keep it."

Nikki Field of Sotheby's International Realty now has the listing.

Alyson Penn and Megan Willett contributed reporting to earlier versions of this article.

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Welcome to Tommy Hilfiger's duplex at the top of New York's Plaza Hotel.

As you can see, the decor is quite grand. Hilfiger has decorated it with priceless art like Andy Warhol paintings and other pieces, but they are not included as part of the sale.

His All-American style is pervasive.

Still hearing rumors that Mainland Chinese buyers are gobbling up every piece of real estate in sight? Probably not, because they aren’t. New numbers from the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) show that China’s fresh capital controls have sent reserves higher for another month.

Who Gives A S--- About China’s Forex Reserves? You Should

Despite China being a massive country, it does not have a fully convertible currency. The local yuan is just useless paper, that has no value unless recognized by the People’s Bank of China. In order to buy anything internationally, the yuan needs to be exchanged to a convertible currency – like US dollars. The convertible currency mostly comes from the pile amassed in the PBoC’s foreign exchange reserves. When it swells, there’s less money leaving the country than entering. When it drops, it means more money is leaving the country than entering it. There’s a little more to it, but we’ve already covered this – so check this out if you still have questions.

Basically, it’s a pretty good measure of how people are spending their money. Or more accurately, since January 2017, it’s a good measure of how the government controls what locals will buy outside of the country.

Foreign Exchange Reserves Rise To Highest Level Since October 2016

China’s foreign exchange reserves rise for the seventh month in a row. Total reserves stood at US$3.091 trillion, a 0.35% increase from the month before. Compared to last year, they’re still down by 2.94%, about US$95 billion, but this is a pretty big improvement compared to the the massive outflow before January 2017. Total reserves are now at the highest they’ve been since October 2016. We said this would wreak havoc on residential real estate markets dependent on Mainland Chinese money, and boy is it ever.

Chinese Buyers Are Disappearing Globally

Mainland Chinese buyers are exiting global real estate markets, as quickly as they became the largest buyers. Australia, one of the largest markets for Chinese overseas buyers is seeing them not just disappear, but these buyers are now failing to find financing to complete purchases. This has led to a number attempting to sell pre-construction before the properties register. New Zealand, another hotspot for Mainland Chinese buyers, is now blaming China’s capital controls for a big decline in foreign buying. Toronto and Vancouver have had noticeable declines too.

The only Canadian city still claiming to have foreign buyers is Montreal, which doesn’t track foreign buyers in any way. It’s cute that agents are going on the news to claim they have Mainland Chinese buyers, but I wouldn’t believe it until they put up any hard data. After all, it’s kind of hard to buy real estate without enough to make a deposit. However, it is really easy for an agent to go on the news, and tell everyone that they should buy property before Chinese buyers do. That type of false information is a fear mongering tactic used to push Canadians to panic buy, and I’m calling bulls--- until I see data that says otherwise.

SEE ALSO: China is creating cracks in one of America's biggest asset bubbles

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A home built by the Rockefeller family in 1938 has gone up for sale for the first time in more than 70 years, asking $22 million.

The 75-acre estate, known as Hudson Pines, was the longtime country home of the late billionaire philanthropist David Rockefeller, who died in March at the age of 101. 

Rockefeller was the former CEO and chairman of Chase Manhattan Bank, and he was the last surviving grandson of John D. Rockefeller, the famous oil tycoon. He was a noted philanthropist and a signer of the Giving Pledge, an agreement to give away the majority of one's wealth.

Rockefeller and his wife, Peggy, who died in 1996, split their time with their family between a Manhattan townhouse and this estate in Pocantico Hills, New York.

David Turner and Anthony Cutugno of Houlihan Lawrence are listing the home, which has 11 bedrooms and more than 11,000 square feet of space.

Let's take a look around. 

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The estate comprises 75 acres of land near the Hudson River.

Architect Mott Schmidt — known for his work with other affluent families, like the Astors and the Vanderbilts — built the main house in 1938. According to the listing, David Rockefeller bought the house, which was originally built for his sister, Abby Rockefeller Milton, in 1946.

Source: The New York Times, Houlihan Lawrence

Many of the architect's signature design details, like this floating staircase, remain around the home.

Bad news keeps piling up at the "leaning tower" of San Francisco.

Millennium Tower is a luxury residential high-rise that has sunk 17 inches and tilted 14 inches since it was completed in 2008. Though an inspection by the city showed it's safe to occupy, the building's wealthy residents take no solace. Their multimillion-dollar condos have tumbled $320,000 in value on average.

Here's what we know about the fate of Millennium Tower.

SEE ALSO: A couple bought one of the most exclusive streets in San Francisco for $90,000 — take a look inside

Millennium Tower rises 58 stories above San Francisco's Financial District.

The city's fourth tallest skyscraper contains over 400 multimillion-dollar condo units. It soars 645 feet in the air, providing residents with panoramic views of the Bay Area.

Source: Wikipedia

Completed in 2008, Millennium Tower includes top-notch amenities, including a pool, fitness center, wine cellar and tasting room, movie theater, and concierge service.

Source: Millennium Tower

A beautiful home owned by former Yahoo CEO Tim Koogle has hit the market for $19.4 million.

Koogle and his wife, Pam Scott, have owned the 12-acre property in Los Altos, California, since 2003, when they bought it for about $8 million, according to Bloomberg. 

The renovated, midcentury house has four bedrooms, four-and-a-half baths, a detached four-car garage, a guesthouse, and a terrace.

Koogle said that his home has played host to a series of influential talks and presentations from people in his business network, including Elon Musk in the beginning days of Tesla.

Koogle was the CEO of Yahoo from 1995 to 2001. He was on the company's board of directors until 2003.

While the couple has many warm memories at this house, they also own at least six other properties. For this reason, Koogle and his wife decided it was in their best interest to downsize.

Richard Williamson of Sotheby's International Realty has the listing.

SEE ALSO: The country mansion of late billionaire philanthropist David Rockefeller is up for grabs for $22 million — take a look inside

The colorful home was originally built in 1955 and has since undergone renovations.

The decor is modern with bright yellow touches throughout the house.

The home has several living spaces, including one outdoors for enjoying the warm, California air.

China's newly wealthy families have increased their overseas investments in European properties and technology stocks in the US, according to research by UBS and Campden.

Enrico Mattoli, head of global family office in Greater China at UBS Wealth Management, said that family offices in Hong Kong and mainland China were increasingly seeking opportunities beyond Asia.

"We've seen growing interest in overseas investments from China's family offices," Mattoli said at the Hong Kong release of the Global Family Office Report 2017.

The annual study, jointly published by UBS and Campden, tracks 262 family offices across the globe with an average of $921 million assets under management.

Among the big trends, he said real estate in London and other European cities have emerged onto the radars of wealthy Chinese families, as many see the retreat in property prices after the Brexit vote as "a good buying opportunity."

Moreover, large technology companies listed on US equity markets are also among favorites, Mattoli said. He cited Facebook and Netflix as among favored selections, while Chinese companies listed in New York, such as Alibaba and Baidu, were also garnering attention.

"Family offices in China are characterized by younger entrepreneurs or 'new wealth,' who are more likely to be oriented towards growth than asset preservation," he said.

He expects to see asset allocation favoring equities, private equity and real estate in the Greater China portfolios, as these assets provide attractive long term returns.

According to the report, family offices in Hong Kong and China have an exceptionally high allocation in real estate compared to other regions. In 2016, about 26% of Greater China portfolios were invested in real estate, versus 20.3% of family offices in the Asia-Pacific and 16.2% of family offices globally.

Meanwhile, equities accounted for 21.2% of the Greater China portfolios, while private equity investments, including direct venture capital and private equity, co-investing, and private equity funds, took up 13.7%.

Cash holdings stood at 12.4%.

The research also found that succession planning is a key priority in Asia-Pacific, as 48.4% of the region's rich families are developing succession plans.

In line with the trend, there is a greater emphasis on the grooming, training and development of the next generation to take over the family business as compared to other regions.

"The next generations of Asian families have a much greater level of involvement in the family office compared to other regions," said Edith Ang, executive director of Family Advisory Group at Asia Pacific, UBS Wealth Management.

Globally, the younger generation of wealth holders have shown greater interest in sustainable investing, also known as environment, social and governance investments.

According to the study, more than 40% of family offices globally expect to increase their allocations in this area.

"Millennials are driving the adoption of impact investing," said Dominic Samuelson, CEO for Campden Wealth.

On average, global family offices' investment returns rose to 7% in 2016 from 0.3% in 2015. Family offices in Asia-Pacific recorded a 6.7% return, the second highest among regions, and just behind North America's 7.7%.

SEE ALSO: Why wealthy Chinese women are flocking to LA to give birth

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Hong Kong is still the world’s most expensive prime office market by a margin, but the Big Apple is sniffing at the top three.

Midtown Manhattan came in fourth in CBRE’s ranking of the world’s most expensive prime office markets in the second quarter of 2017, behind Hong Kong’s Central district, Beijing’s Finance Street and Hong Kong’s West Kowloon neighborhood.

At the end of 2016 Midtown ranked sixth but it has since overtaken London’s West End and Beijing’s Central Business District. However, CBRE noted in the survey that its methodology recently changed meaning shifts in the ranking don’t necessarily reflect actual rent growth.

Midtown’s prime rent averaged $153.50 in mid-2017. That’s still not even close to Hong Kong, where prime office space in the Central Business District averages $269.26 per square foot.

Midtown South ($113.53) ranked ninth and Downtown Manhattan ($75.35) ranked 24th.

“New York’s Midtown South recorded double-digit, year-over-year growth, and Downtown Manhattan and Seattle (Downtown) also placed among the 10 markets with the fastest growing prime office rents,” the report noted.

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Given the age of the housing stock in the U.S., with almost 60% of homes built prior to 1980, Amazon will undoubtedly have an impact on the fix-and-flip market wherever it ultimately decides to build its second HQ.

HQ2, as its been named, is estimated to bring around 50,000 employees, most of whom will be paid well and in line with their Seattle colleagues. This means there will be a surge of housing demand. With the U.S. still approximately 3 million new home builds behind what it was forecasted to have built since 2008, the answer is likely in rehabilitating and improving existing homes.

Even in the largest markets, the entrance of an economic titan like Amazon means a surge in the fix-and-flip market. Here's which cities would be best suited to Amazon's new headquarters:

Atlanta, Georgia

As a land-central city with no physical barriers impeding suburban sprawl, Atlanta has seen a huge influx of investment in commercial, multi-family, and single family buildings in the last 24 months. Atlanta ranks 4th in the nation for Fortune 500 Company headquarters (Delta Airlines, SunTrust Bank, Home Depot and Coca-Cola, to name a few). Such a diverse economic base has been a key driver for millennial’s to settle in Atlanta.

Atlanta is one of the biggest cities in the country to benefit from the millennial migration trend. Many people, not just millennials, want to move in town closer to the city and its amenities. There are simply not enough homes for everyone that wants to live there. Housing supply dropped 4.9% over June 2016, per Market Brief, and inventory sits at a low 3.2 months. Atlanta is well positioned to support the influx of employees Amazon’s second campus would bring to the region.

Atlanta over the last 5 years has invested heavily in infrastructure (International Airport redevelopment and new light rail transportation lines to name a few) which has driven a vast majority of redevelopment in Downtown Atlanta and surrounding regions. In addition, the city’s government has approved over 22 miles of new running trails and numerous recreational parks, something which Amazon has driven heavily in Seattle.

Cincinnati, Ohio

The third largest city in Ohio, Cincinnati is best known for its expansive collection of historic architecture. Home to a local population of just over 2 million residence, Cincinnati has a median home price of $152,500 making it one of the most affordable cities in the nation. Cincy boasts many great neighborhoods to live, the Northside neighborhood in particular has seen tremendous economic growth as the traditional artist district now gives way to distinctive retail shops and boutique eateries.

The Kroger Company is the largest employer in the city employing over 21,000 local residence. Other notable firms include Procter & Gamble, Duke Energy and Omnicare to name a few. When comparing other cities Amazon could select it is unlikely Cincinnati is a top contender.

Memphis, Tennessee

The city of Memphis holds the second largest city population with 665,770 residence. The city’s unique location on the Mississippi River enables a robust commerce and shipping industry which employs over 69,000 residence. FedEx is the largest employer in the region employing over 30,000 Memphians.

The region also benefits from tourism as the region has attractions such as Graceland (former home of Elvis Presley), National Civil Rights Museum, and Mud Island River Park. One trendy neighborhood to point out is Midtown, located at the city's core. This area is perhaps the most diverse region in Memphis where you will find artist, political progressives and millennials living side-by-side.

The area also is home to Overton Park, a 342-acre public park with running trails, recreational fields and a golf course. Amazon would be attracted to Memphis due to its port like features (similar to Seattle) and future redevelopment projects to modernize the downtown landscape. One hesitation for Amazon entering Memphis would be the region’s ability to retain and attract new talent as there is a lack of economic diversification.

One time I bought real estate without even laying eyes on it. It was a small property. I ended up earning a decent return on my investment.

I was lucky. I’ve lost count of the number of friends and acquaintances of mine who’ve been badly burnt by buying real estate that looked good on paper – what was something else entirely in reality.

This happens a lot in Asia. Investors in this part of the world are ripe for the picking for developers in cities like London, New York, San Francisco, Vancouver, and Sydney. Asian buyers are cash rich, and love luxury new-build property.

Investors in Asia real estate – full stop. And many Asian real estate investors like to buy properties in countries that have lower political and legal risk than they experience at home.

Asian buyers are also used to closing a deal quickly. Hong Kong property investors will sign sales and purchase agreements within an hour or two of a viewing.

Often, they’ll sign there on the spot. I once bought four apartments on my American Express card in such a situation. Overseas developers and agencies love to tap into this trait.

Cities in Asia are constantly hosting agents and developers flogging shiny new properties “off plan”. The numbers of advertisements I see in the local press touting projects in London, Sydney or some other favoured destination says a lot about the conditions in that market.

Advertisements for London property are the most numerous. London is a valued “rule of law” country, and viewed by many Asians as the most important financial centre in the world. It is also known to be more tax and regulation friendly than the U.S. For decades it has been the preferred destination for people from all over Europe, the Middle East, Asia wanting to buy and hold some real estate as a hedge against conditions in their own countries.

Investors may have a general idea of the area they are buying into, but many don’t. They become victims of what can be a sophisticated sales exercise.

The glossy brochures don’t show what’s happening on the ground

On paper, you can’t see the smoke belching factory just down the road, or the noisy freeway running past the end of the block, or the rail line rattling past the back window.  Or that soon-to-be high rise next door that just received planning permission.

A number of people I know have recently been tempted into buying brand new properties off plan in a certain area of central London. This area is undergoing a regeneration, a rebirth that has been more than twenty-five years in the making, and which is getting off the ground now.

It sounds good. The only problem, though, is that the number of new apartments that will be hitting the market over the next three to five years is unprecedented for central London.

Oversupply is a certainty.  And with it, prices and rentals are going to come under pressure.

Yes, it will be a successful regeneration – over the next generation or so. In the meantime, prices will fall… and, but only with time, recover.

My guess is that it will be a decade, maybe more, before the market for these properties reaches today’s levels.I say this having experienced a similar cycle in London myself.

The people who have asked me about investing in this area of London may have some knowledge of the city. But have not been and visited the area where they are looking at buying.

They are simply unaware of the massive amounts of building going on in the area, and the impact that this is likely to have on property values.

And of course, the developers and agents do not want to come forward with this kind of information.

Just think about it. Why is the developer peddling his new building off-plan to buyers located thousands of miles away? Simple. He doesn’t want you to visit the site – and he thinks overseas buyers will buy what his local buyers won’t!

Why else go to all the expense of advertising his London or New York property in Hong Kong, Singapore, or Beijing? He reckons that overseas buyers will pay a price that the domestic market won’t – because they’d check it out and know better.

This is particularly true of London, where thousands of new high-rise apartments are springing up and being sold all over Asia, the Middle East, Eastern Europe. Why?  Well the simple fact is that London folks really do not like living in high-rise developments. It does not suit them.  Maybe they’ll get used to it, but that would be a slow process.

In the meantime they prefer low-rise living, with greenery on the side.

Asians, on the other hand in fact prefer high-rise living. They like the feeling of security that living in a safe, well managed apartment block can bring. The “lock up and leave” aspect of high-rise housing also has attractions.

Judging by London property advertisements I see in the local media in Asia, I’m amazed at just how big “Prime Central London” has become!

Remember… if it looks too good to be true, it almost always is….

SEE ALSO: Toronto’s foreign real estate buyers are disappearing

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Rich residents looking to bail on Millennium Tower, a 58-story skyscraper in San Francisco that is sinking and tilting, are slashing prices to move their units on the real-estate market.

Several dozen condos at 301 Mission Street have hit the market since 2016, when the tower first made international headlines. Sellers have cut prices significantly in order to attract buyers.

Millennium Tower has sunk 17 inches and tilted 14 inches at the top since it was completed in 2008. An inspection by the city showed it's safe to occupy, though satellite images suggest the high-rise will continue to sink at a rate of two inches per year. It's unlikely to fall anytime soon, in part because it's sinking too slowly to take anyone by surprise. A fix is also in the works.

Here are all the multimillion-dollar homes currently for sale at Millennium Tower.

SEE ALSO: A 58-story skyscraper in San Francisco is tilting and sinking — and residents say their multimillion-dollar condos are 'nearly worthless'

The owners of a two-bedroom, two-bath home at Millennium Tower have taken $101,000 off the listing price since late July. Apartment 33E has spent nearly 200 days on Zillow.

The asking price of homes for sale in San Francisco has gone up 4.4% over the last year, according to real-estate site Redfin. Homes typically sell for 110% of the asking price.

Learn more about 301 Mission Street Apartment 33E » 

Apartment 33E is listed for $2.39 million, which is about double the median asking price for a two-bedroom home in San Francisco.

Source: Redfin

Natural light pours in through the floor-to-ceiling windows, which offer panoramic views.

One-third of the island of Molokai — the fifth-largest island in Hawaii — is up for sale for $260 million.

The property, called Molokai Ranch, encompasses 55,575 acres of the island. Mark Zuckerberg had reportedly considered purchasing it back in 2015, before he ultimately settled on a 750-acre property on the North Shore of Kauai.

The land doesn't come without restrictions, however. Its current owner, investment holding company GL Ltd., has run into numerous issues with the island's 7,000 locals while attempting to build various projects there since the 1990s, reports Bloomberg. Many objected to what they saw as overdevelopment of their homeland, and in response, GL shut down the ranch in 2008. 

"Residents of Molokai don't like to be bullied," Alan Arakawa, the mayor of the city and county of Maui, said.

Ultimately, GL said it hopes the buyer has a "new vision" for the property. Scott Carvill and Vicki Yu of Carvill Sotheby's International Realty have the listing. See its stunning coastline and land, below.

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Whoever buys the ranch, which takes up roughly 35% of the island, will be one of the top five private landowners in the state.

In the 1800s, part of the land was occupied by the Hawaiian royal family.

Source: Bloomberg

The island has a history of agriculture and an operating cattle business.

The US housing market has recovered from the 2008 sub-prime mortgage crisis by at least one metric.

Today, more than one in 25 ZIP codes in America could be called a "million-dollar ZIP." That's 172 more than at the housing-market peak in 2007.

Zillow defines million-dollar ZIPs as areas where at least 10% of the homes are worth $1 million or more.

"It's a sign of the times that over half the housing stock in the US has regained value since the housing bust, and many markets are more expensive than they've ever been," Zillow's chief economist Svenja Gudell told Business Insider.

Home prices have surged across the country in response to stagnant housing supply. Coupled with slow wage growth, homeownership is no longer within reach for many Americans, especially millennials. As of July, the national homeownership rate was just under 64%, and even lower in many coastal markets, where million-dollar ZIPs abound.

"It shows how tough it is to break into the market as a buyer. Even though mortgage rates are so low, the down payment on a $1 million home is hard to save for," Gudell said. "Millennials are trying to break into these homeownership markets because the jobs are there, and they're having a hard time."

The average home value in a million-dollar ZIP was $900,584 in May, nearly 4.5 times the national home value of $200,400.

Though high prices are a sign of recovery, movement hasn't been consistently skyward. In 2014, the total number of million-dollar ZIPs in the US dipped to 958, according to Zillow, about 0.5% fewer than pre-recession era.

But by May of 2017, that number had risen to 1,280, equal to 4.35% of all US ZIP codes. The West Coast accounted for nearly one-third of that growth, minting new million-dollar ZIPs in Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, San Jose, Los Angeles, and San Diego.

Another 26% of new million-dollar ZIPs since 2014 came from New York, Boston, Miami, and Washington, DC.

San Francisco and San Jose metro areas lead the nation, with 74% and 77%, respectively, of all ZIP codes considered million-dollar areas. Seattle experienced remarkable growth as well, doubling its million-dollar ZIP count since 2007 to 38 — 24% of the metro area's total ZIPs.

Coastal housing markets have always been more expensive than markets in interior states, but with increasing millennial populations in these cities, many of whom are looking to settle down, prices are being driven even higher.

"A million-dollar home is no entry level home," Gudell said. "Even for a well-off millennial, you're going to have a hard time scraping together a down payment for that home and a lot of times you're not getting a conventional mortgage, you're getting a jumbo mortgage."

Ultimately, the surge in million-dollar ZIPs is a likely contributor to today's record low homeownership rates among millennials, along with increased student debt burdens, and choosing to live with family. As long as home prices continue to rise in popular markets, pricing out young people, Gudell said, renter populations — and rents — will increase, too.

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Guggenheim Partners, a $290 billion investment firm with ties to the family behind New York's Guggenheim Museum, is being rocked by a leadership crisis that has now broken into the city's tabloids.

In the past 24 hours, the company has pushed back on multiple reports that CEO Mark Walter will step down; its chief investment officer has claimed on CNBC that there's "no tumult" at the company; and Guggenheim has denied reports on a real-estate blog and in the New York Post that Walter bought a California mansion for a younger female executive at the company.

The company's CIO, Scott Minerd — who is credited with growing the firm's assets to nearly $300 billion— acknowledged that the firm faced an examination by the Securities and Exchange Commission. He didn't elaborate, but Reuters has reported that it's related to an investment in a London-listed business with banking investments in Africa.

Walter, who owns the Los Angeles Dodgers and helped found Guggenheim, "has no present intent to relinquish his position as CEO," a Guggenheim representative told Business Insider in an email.

The denials came after Bloomberg News reported that the 57-year-old billionaire might step away from day-to-day management of the firm following reports of tumult among executives. The Financial Times and Reuters also published similar reports.

A key issue, according to the Financial Times, was the promotion of Alexandra Court to global head of institutional distribution a year ago. That coincided with the firing of 22 members of the executive team, the newspaper reported.

Citing "scores of employees and clients," the Financial Times reported that the move was a "lightning rod for many staff members as her promotion led to radical changes to the group's asset management unit that alarmed several clients and contributed to the departure of several senior managers."

It triggered tension between Walter and Minerd, The Wall Street Journal reported, "because it meant he and his team couldn't pick up the phone to talk to clients about investments or help raise new assets."

The Journal also reported that Walter and Court had a "personal relationship." The company denies that Court and Walter, who is married, have a relationship beyond a business one.

According to her LinkedIn profile, Court has been at Guggenheim for seven years. Fellow employees told the Financial Times they were upset she didn't have a US securities license. She's currently on a "sabbatical" from the firm, the Post reported.

Court's $13.4 million home in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles is also part of the controversy. Records show it was acquired by the same entity as the one that handled the purchase of Walter's $85 million home, the real-estate blog Yolanda's Little Black Book reported.

"With regard to the blog item about a Pacific Palisades house, Mark Walter does not own the home in Pacific Palisades that is mentioned in the blog, nor did he buy it for Ms. Court," Guggenheim told Business Insider.

Here's a memo Guggenheim's board of directors sent to employees on Wednesday in support of Walter:

To: All Employees

From: Guggenheim Partners Board of Directors

Date: September 20, 2017

You may have read various recent accounts in the business press regarding Guggenheim and its senior management. In spite of our representatives telling the press what we summarize below, stories have been published that are, simply, wrong. We issue this — a unanimous statement of Guggenheim's Board — to set the record straight.

1. Mark Walter, CEO and Founder of Guggenheim Partners has the full and unequivocal support of the entire Board, each and every one of its members.

2. Every Board Member affirms full and complete support of Mark Walter as CEO and full and complete support of Scott Minerd as well as the entire senior executive leadership of Guggenheim.

3. The firm is thriving, growing, stable and strong.

We trust that this clear and concise communication ends the confusion and misinformation that has characterized recent press coverage of our firm.

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Thousands of Facebook employees are about to experience a much more pleasant commute.

The social media giant has signed a lease at 181 Fremont, a mixed-use skyscraper that will be the tallest residential building on the West Coast once it's completed later this year. The tower rises 70 stories over San Francisco's Financial District and will house 2,000 to 3,000 Facebook and Instagram employees across 33 floors, a spokesperson for Facebook told Business Insider.

The 436,000-square-foot office space will be Facebook's first outpost in San Francisco. The company currently shuttles thousands of employees from the city to its headquarters in Menlo Park, which is located about 35 miles south. The jaunt can take up to two hours in traffic.

The blockbuster deal, which was first reported by the San Francisco Business Times, marks San Francisco's largest office lease in three years. The Business Times didn't report the duration of the lease, but said the asking rent was "around $80 per square foot," which totals to $35 million for the entire space. Facebook declined to confirm details of the lease.

Facebook employees will share the stunning new skyscraper with some well-heeled residential tenants — the upper floors hold 67 luxury condos.

These renderings of 181 Fremont give us a glimpse inside Facebook's new building.

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Facebook's first outpost in San Francisco is one of the most lavish towers in the city.

Designer Orlando Diaz-Azcuy and architectural firm Heller Manus Architects set out to make 181 Fremont the epitome of luxury. Developers of the $665 million tower spared no expense.

"The vision for 181 Fremont is not simply to raise the bar for luxury living in San Francisco, but to set an entirely new one," a brochure for interested residential buyers said.

It rises 70 stories over the Financial District and neighbors the new Salesforce Tower.

The developers of 181 Fremont describe the building as an "engineering marvel." An aluminum-based exoskeleton twists around the building to provide added support.

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There may be a fix in the works for San Francisco's very own "leaning tower."

Millennium Tower has sunk 17 inches and tilted 14 inches since its completion in 2008. Satellite images suggest the residential high-rise — home to more than 200 multimillion-dollar condos — will continue to sink two inches per year.

In July, the San Francisco Chronicle's Matier & Ross reported a bit of good news for the building's wealthy residents.

A pair of engineering firms hired by developer Millennium Partners and other parties said they have a solution to stabilize the tower and "prop it back upright."

The LERA firm and DeSimone Consulting Engineers want to drill 50 to 100 new piles (a type of foundation in the shape of a pillar) 200 feet down to bedrock from the building's basement, according to the Chronicle. These piles would support the existing 900 piles in the ground.

"Our top priority has always been getting a 'fix,'" PJ Johnston, a spokesperson for 301 Mission St. Development — a business arm of Millennium Partners — told Business Insider.

Johnston declined to comment on progress that's been made to install the new piles, citing a confidentiality agreement as part of an active mediation between Millennium Partners, the homeowners association, and other parties, to address the building's problems.

The engineering teams told the Chronicle the fix will cost between $100 million and $150 million, which is considerably less than what some experts expected.

No one wants to foot the bill for the repair, largely because the tower's developers, residents, and neighbors can't agree on who is at fault for Millennium Tower's sinking.

Millennium Partners blames nearby construction at the Transbay Transit Center. The group argues that construction for the bus terminal pumped too much water out of the ground, causing sand to compress and the building to settle through a process called dewatering.

"We have long warned that construction at these adjacent sites — including ongoing dewatering — was causing vertical and differential settlement of the building. These impacts are continuing," Johnston told Business Insider. "We will support any effort by the [homeowners association] to hold accountable those parties that have caused these impacts on the building."

The developer of the Transbay Transit Center has insisted it's not at fault. A statement from the Transbay Joint Powers Authority released last October said "inadequate foundation" and failure to anchor to bedrock is the "exclusive cause" of the tower's tilt. It also pointed out that Millennium Tower started to sink two years after construction on the bus terminal began.

The Chronicle said there will likely be negotiation and possible litigation, involving Millennium Partners, the homeowners association, and TJPA, to decide who's picking up the bill. 

"We are confident that this mediation will be able to resolve the building issues, including any concerns about settlement and tilt, so long as the [homeowners association] remains committed — as are we committed — to the success of the mediation process," Johnston said.

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Facebook just dropped $35 million to take over all 33 floors of commercial space at 181 Fremont, a mixed-use skyscraper that will the third tallest building in San Francisco upon completion in 2017. It's the social media giant's first outpost in San Francisco.

When Facebook and Instagram, which was acquired by Facebook in 2012, move into their new offices later this year, employees will share the 70-story tower with some well-heeled residents.

181 Fremont — the tallest residential tower west of the Mississippi River — contains 67 luxury condos, including a full-floor penthouse. The $42 million penthouse price tag makes it the most expensive listing in San Francisco right now. It hit the market in March and has not sold.

These renderings of the penthouse at 181 Fremont give us a glimpse inside.

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181 Fremont has been called the most luxurious building on the West Coast by Forbes.

Source: Forbes

Designer Orlando Diaz-Azcuy and architectural firm Heller Manus Architects set out to make 181 Fremont the epitome of luxury. It cost an estimated $665 million to build.

"The vision for 181 Fremont is not simply to raise the bar for luxury living in San Francisco, but to set an entirely new one," said a brochure for interested residential buyers.

The tower rises 70 stories over San Francisco's Financial District and will house 2,000 to 3,000 Facebook and Instagram employees across 436,000 square feet of office space.

Venture capitalist Vinny Smith, founder of Toba Capital, has placed his riverfront estate in Oakley, Utah, on the market for $30 million. Smith is also the former CEO of Quest Software, which was acquired by Dell for $2.4 billion in 2012. 

In addition to the main 16,800-square-foot home on the banks of the Weber River, the property called Riverbend Ranch comes with a helicopter pad, wine cellar, and movie room.

"There is so much to do on-property that it feels like your own private oasis," Smith told Business Insider.

Paul Benson of Engel & Völkers has the listing. Take a look at the home, below. 

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The entire estate is 1,918 acres of Utah land.

Its close proximity to the river allows for easy access to fishing and other outdoor activities.

"We can fly fish in the river while the kids go tubing," Smith said. "We hike, ride ATVs, snow mobile, [and] we even go dog sledding."

It was an expensive summer for Beyoncé and Jay-Z.

Less than two months after the billion-dollar power couple purchased a 2-acre hillside estate in Los Angeles for $88 million, they've scooped up a $26 million Hamptons property, reports Trulia.

The 12,000 square-foot mansion is located in East Hampton, New York, and sits adjacent to Georgica Pond.

The Carters currently hold Forbes' title of the highest-paid celebrity couple in the world, with a combined fortune of $1.16 billion.

The entertainment moguls have famously been serial renters, only recently settling down as homeowners after the birth of their twins in June.

Below, take a peek inside Beyoncé and Jay-Z's new Hamptons abode.

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Designed by architect Stanford White and built a century ago, the home has been renovated and expanded over the years to incorporate new, modern amenities.

The property includes a detached, 1,800-square-foot guest cottage. There's also a 45-foot-long infinity pool and accompanying spa.

Elevated on a two-acre site with over 200 feet of waterfront on Georgica Pond, it's private and secluded. The previous owner reportedly rotated the original house 90-degrees to frame the views of the waterfront from the living room.