AP Midwestern homebuyers helped spark a national increase in real estate sales during April, a sign that demand for housing remains steady despite rising prices and tight inventories. Sales of existing homes rose 1.7 percent last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.45 million, the National Association of Realtors said. Americans are eagerly searching for homes. But …

  AFP Four lucky competition winners are set to be the first people in history to use the Eiffel Tower as a vacation home next month. Rental company HomeAway is taking over part of the first floor of the iconic 300-meter (yard) landmark for the duration of the UEFA Euro 2016 soccer tournament in Paris, and transforming it into Hausmannian-style …

  Bloomberg A luxury-condo project planned for the lower Manhattan site of what was once to be the “Ground Zero mosque” has received $219 million in financing from an international consortium of lenders, paving the way for 50 high-end units to enter a New York market that is growing heavy with them. Developer Soho Properties, led by Sharif El-Gamal, said …