The New York Times

Homes that come with a low-rate mortgage, which can be transferred from the existing homeowner to a new home buyer, are making a comeback. The process of assuming a mortgage won’t work for all would-be buyers because there are several hurdles they may need to clear before they can claim the keys, often including a hefty down payment. For home sellers, it can be advertised alongside marble countertops, to attract more potential buyers. “There were other homes — they were nice and everything,” one buyer said, “but I went for the lowest rate I could find.”

These are the cities with the most dog-friendly rentals and the most popular breeds, according to a new study. Examining rental listings in the 25 largest U.S. cities, researchers learned that 55% of the homes were listed as dog-friendly and the friendliest were in Texas. https://nyti.ms/4dwdvS2

Is AI companionship bad? Our columnist Kevin Roose decided to explore the question and spent a month making AI friends. They offered small talk, companionship and even some surprisingly good advice. "The technology needed for realistic AI companionship is already here, and I believe that over the next few years, millions of people are going to form intimate relationships with AI chatbots," Roose writes. "Some users will scoff at befriending a chatbot. But others, especially people for whom socializing is hard or unappealing, will invite AIs into the innermost parts of their lives."

In The New York Times Opinion Section "There’s clearly something wrong when young graduates can’t find jobs at the same time that employers complain of not being able to find qualified workers," writes Peter Coy. "As of March, there were still fewer unemployed people than job openings, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In April the unemployment rate remained below average at 3.9 percent." Peter asked new college graduates to tell him about their job searches — here's what they had to say.

The Financial Independence Retire Early (FIRE) movement got its start in the early 2000s with a mantra of extreme saving. It has since come to include anyone who would like to exit the work force on their own terms, at an age of their own choosing. After decades of tolerating workaholic culture as the norm, employees are tired, unafraid to show it and yearning to yank back control of their lives.

Joe co-founded a delivery business that he sold in 2021 for an amount that meant he would never have to work again; he retired in January last year. He and his wife Barbara had time. They had money. They had leisure. They also had a problem. They were driving each other mad. For many relationships, life after work brings an unexpected set of challenges.

Today The New York Times joins together with The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal to commemorate World Press Freedom Day, shining a light on the plight of missing and detained journalists across the globe. Read our joint letter in full:

Thanks to huge increases in the value of homes since 2021, sellers are making double or triple what they paid, and more sales are triggering the capital gains tax. Here's where people are paying the most.

The Justice Department accused Google of illegally protecting its monopoly over search, a claim the company has denied. The judge overseeing the antitrust challenge tried poking holes in the closing arguments on Thursday.

Many developers, spurred by the pandemic to invest money in new self-storage facilities, have been caught short by this drop in demand. In markets where much of the self-storage spaces have been built over the past couple of years, falling rental rates combined with climbing construction and financing costs have prompted some developers to walk away from projects entirely. The demand cooled particularly in cities like Phoenix and Atlanta, researchers say. Here’s what to know.