Priced out 🏡
  Tonight: Good news and bad news for anyone trying to buy a house. Plus: All the news that's fit to eat. Let's get into it. 🔥 HOT HOT HOUSING  House hunting became the national pastime of the Covid era. It hardly mattered if you could barely scrape together a down payment or you were packing a duffel bag full of cash to bring to a viewing, the pandemic put virtually everyone in a buying mood.
But by now we all know what happened: Demand far outstripped supply, sparking bidding wars so vicious you might need a helmet and elbow pads in addition to that duffel bag of cash and whatever other sweeteners you could muster.
And in that furor, Millennials and other first-time buyers got screwed, yet again. Pour another glass of wine as you tap tap tap away on those tantalizing red Zillow dots — tiny portals to the life you were raised to believe you deserve, a life that was within reach if you just worked hard, that would signal to the world you'd made it, the milestone purchase that your parents promised was the best way to build wealth… Ah, if only…
Well, there's good news and bad news, dreamers. The bad news is that home prices are up about 20% over the past year, and they're unlikely to come down significantly in 2022. And those historically low mortgage rates ushered in by the pandemic? Yeah, those are going back up.
The good news: You can still get a piece of the market without being a homeowner.
Investing in real estate, my colleague Anna Bahney explains, has long been the realm of "accredited investors" — typically rich people with access to high-risk investments like private equity real estate funds. But Normals can still get a piece of the action through investment products like mutual funds and ETFs tied to real estate.
Here's how:
REITs 101
Crowdfunding
Real estate debt
Crowdfunding sites offer decent returns, though probably not as much as buying property directly, said Blaine Thiederman, certified financial planner and founder of Progress Wealth Management.
And, of course, don't forget to diversify. No investment comes without risk, including real estate. "I typically don't recommend anyone invest more than 10% of their portfolio in real estate whether it be through a REIT, an investment through an online platform like Fundrise, or in rental properties because there's just so much risk," said Thiederman. #️⃣ NUMBER OF THE DAY 1,620 Airlines continued to cancel and delay flights as their workers called out sick with coronavirus. As of Thursday afternoon, carriers had canceled more than 1,620 flights and delayed more than 1,350 nationwide. On Wednesday, airlines canceled a total 1,790 flights and delayed another 6,097.
🥡 FOOD!  What is this, two food roundups in one week? Yes, yes it is. And it's all thanks to CNN Business' prolific Jordan Valinsky. Let's dig in.
🌮 THE BELL TOLLS AGAIN Taco Bell is really bringin' it in 2022. ICYMI: The chain rolled out limited-time chicken wings earlier this week, and of course Nightcap was all over that news. Now, for $10 a month, you can get a taco per day for 30 consecutive days with the "Taco Lover's Pass." Give us this day our daily Bell…
🥤 MAKE IT BOOZY Canned cocktails are the new spiked seltzer, I'm calling it.
Coca-Cola, following a tried-and-true formula of taking a delicious drink and adding booze, is planning to release an alcoholic Fresca drink later this year. We didn't get a ton of details, but we know it'll be a spirit-based canned cocktail called Fresca Mixed. (Side note: Where are my Fresca heads out there? Can we all agree Fresca, the zero-calorie grapefruit soda, is a wildly underrated Coke offering that deserves much more prominence on menus? Who's with me?)
Some context: Canned cocktail sales grew 53% last year and are projected to grow another 29% over the next three years, Jordan writes. Canned cocktails are on the up and up just as interest in spiked seltzer – 2020's It Girl in the beverage industry – is fading.
My ice-cold take: Fresca Fall is the new White Claw Summer.
🌱 CHICKEN-ISH KFC's new plant-based fried chicken nugget alternative, called Beyond Fried Chicken, is finally landing this Monday, January 10 (yay!) but only for a limited time (boooo!). The Colonel struck up a deal with Beyond Meat a year ago, aiming for customers who are either vegetarian or just looking to eat more plant-based food.
My crispy-crunchy take: I really hope this takes off, because a) vegetarians need more fast-food options, and b) let's be real, the addictive thing about KFC ain't about the chicken, it's about that savory deep-fried breading that's probably 180% of a person's daily recommended sodium.
🇺🇸 QUOTE OF THE DAY  You can't love your country only when you win. —President Joe Biden
On the anniversary of the attack on the US Capitol, President Biden excoriated his predecessor for attempting to undo American democracy, saying such an insurrection must never happen again. In a roughly 30-minute speech at the Capitol, Biden, who has typically avoided speaking directly about Donald Trump since taking office, didn't mince words about the former president's lies and conduct. "His bruised ego matters more to him than our democracy or our Constitution; he can't accept he lost."
WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON? 🛁 Bed Bath & Beyond is closing 37 stores in the coming weeks, part of the company's multi-year transformation that includes creating private labels, remodeling stores and focusing on e-commerce.
📈 The December jobs report comes out tomorrow, and economists expect to see strong gains in hiring. But the report won't show the full impact of the Omicron variant just yet.
🚗 BMW's new electric concept vehicle goes from white to gray or black and back again at the touch of a button.
💰 Millions of people are quitting their jobs for better opportunities. Here's what they need to know about their 401(k). TWEET OF THE DAY 
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