Alternative Investing Report - November 26, 2025

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*as of 11/25; Sources: S&P, BTC, FTSE, DJRE, CL50

U.S. home prices continued to fall in September, with the S&P Cotality Case-Shiller Index down 0.3% for the month, and the FHFA House Price Index showing a slight decline as well. The Case-Shiller Index showed prices up 1.3% year-over-year, and the FHFA index showed a 1.7% annual increase, the lowest pace since 2012. Texas and Florida cities continued to show significant declines, with Tampa and Phoenix the worst performing metro areas in the Case-Shiller report, and the bottom five cities in the FHFA report all coming from those two states. Chicago and New York City were the top performers in the Case-Shiller report, with the Northeast and Midwest also topping the FHFA report.

➨ TAKEAWAY: While year-over-year housing prices are up, they are lagging behind the 3% pace of inflation, meaning that in real terms prices are down over the last year, making it even more of a buyer’s market than it appears at first glance. And more buyers are getting into the market as mortgage rates fell slightly last month, so pending home sales actually increased by 1.9%, though they are still down 0.4% annually. Potential rate cuts in December and January could help bring more buyers to the table, but that outcome is far from guaranteed.

In this episode, Vincent co-founder Slava Rubin and Sacra's Jan-Erik Asplund discuss the design startup Figma's recent IPO, its competitive landscape, financial metrics, and the impact of AI on the design software market. They explore Figma's core products, growth potential, and the risks associated with its valuation. The conversation also touches on the broader implications of AI in the design space and the future projections for Figma as a public company.

📉 Consumer confidence plummets: The Conference Board consumer confidence index fell 7.1% monthly to hit the lowest level since April, as expectations for the labor market dropped significantly.

📊 Producer Price Index: The inflation measure showed that wholesale prices rose 0.3% in September and 2.7% annually, in line with expectations. When food and energy prices are excluded, core PPI was up 0.1%, below expectations, and 2.6% annually.

🤖 Government AI initiative: President Trump signed an executive order to launch the “Genesis Mission” to support American AI efforts and build a model using federal datasets to help train it.

🚀 X-energy fundraise: The nuclear energy startup, which builds small modular reactors, raised a massive $700 million Series D at an undisclosed valuation, as the nuclear power sector has attracted renewed interest.

🏡 Adults living at home: The percentage of young adults aged 18-34 living at home with their parents rose from 31.8% in 2023 to 32.5% last year, with coastal states seeing an even higher proportion due to rent affordability issues.

🪙 Bitcoin ETF outflows: The largest Bitcoin ETF — Blackrock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF — has seen $2.2 billion in outflows this month, nearly eight times higher than its previous worst month. The drawdown is both a cause of and a consequence of Bitcoin’s falling price over the past couple of weeks.

We highlighted the native token of the decentralized exchange Uniswap a couple weeks ago after it surged in price by 65% due to a proposed switch to its fee structure to benefit token holders. Though the token price responded favorably, we cautioned that the bump may be short-lived, and sure enough, after hitting a hit of $9.67, the token has fallen all the way back to where it was before the proposal was made public. This turnaround, while not surprising, is a good example of crypto’s volatility and why investors often try to “sell the news” rather than jump in when a token’s price is rapidly rising.