If there’s been a defining trend in American cities thus far in the 21st century, it’s been the rise of housing prices to astronomical levels. That’s also meant a huge increase in the number of people who aren’t able to afford a place to live, according to Gregg Colburn, a professor at the University of Washington who co-authored the book “Homelessness Is a Housing Problem: How Structural Factors Explain U.S. Patterns.” We spoke with him as part of our new “Finding Your Place” series exploring the reality of homelessness in America. And finally, the debt ceiling deal struck over the weekend faces a legislative test in Congress.

From the BBC World Service: Ahead of the launch of a new iPhone model, Apple supplier Foxconn is ramping up efforts to recruit more workers for the world’s largest iPhone factory. Delegates from 175 countries are meeting in Paris for a major conference on ending plastic pollution. In Portugal, the housing crisis is getting worse, despite new government measures to try to control it; in Lisbon, the average rent is now three times the minimum wage.

President Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy announced this weekend that they had struck an agreement on raising the nation’s debt ceiling in exchange for spending cuts over the next two years. We look at what’s in the joint proposal, and why its passage in Congress may involve wrangling the votes of holdout legislators. Plus, one factor that’s contributing to rising rents and house prices are demographic trends, including more people living alone. And, a look at how Disney’s “The Little Mermaid” film is boosting businesses that make “real” mermaid tails.

It’s Memorial Day, which means lots and lots of people across the country are on the move in their cars and campers. But even as the holiday travel season is expected to break records, sales of new RVs are not following suit. Plus, Turkish President Erdogan has won a second term in office following a runoff election on Sunday. And finally, we talk with the BBC’s Will Bain about what the CEO of Binance, one of the major crypto trading firms, had to say about the future of regulation in the digital currency space.

From the BBC World Service: Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan has secured another five years in power. We look at what went on during Sunday’s election. It’s the 70th anniversary of the first successful ascent of Mount Everest, but you’ll need a lot of cash to follow in the footsteps of Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay. Despite Lebanon’s economy being in disarray, the club scene in its capital, Beirut is still going strong.