Author: Brad Beckett

The National Association of Realtors is reporting that existing home sales were down 5.4% in June to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 5.12 million (down 14.2% year over year).  Total housing inventory at the end of June was 1,260,000 units, up 2.4% from one year ago.  Unsold inventory sits at a 3-month supply at the current sales rate with properties remaining on the market for around 14 days.  The median existing-home price for all housing types in June was $416k, up 13.4% from one year ago.  The NAR says this marks 124 consecutive months of year-over-year increases, still the longest-running…

The U.S. government is reporting that privately‐owned housing starts in June were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,559,000, which is 2% lower than May’s revised number and 6.3% lower than one year ago.  June’s rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 568k.  Privately‐owned housing units authorized by building permits in June were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,685,000, which is 0.6% lower than May’s revised number.  Authorizations of units in buildings with five units or more were at a rate of 666k in May. Click here to read the full report at…

We have had a lot of posts about population data – especially the importance of knowing where people are moving to/from.  Today’s graphic from the Visual Capitalist illustrates a decade of population movement across U.S. counties, painting a detailed picture of U.S. population growth between 2010 and 2020.  Stay safe and have a Happy Friday!!! There are a number of factors that determine how much a region’s population changes…If an area sees a high number of migrants, along with a strong birth rate and low death rate, then its population is bound to increase over time. On the flip side,…

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics is reporting that the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) was up 1.3% in June, 2022.  However, the all items index was up 9.1% for the 12 months ending in June – the largest 12-month increase since November, 1981.  The energy index alone (gas prices) increased 41.6% over the last year, the highest since April, 1980 – when Jimmy Carter was President. Click here to read the full release at the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

According to the latest Yardi Matrix Multifamily Report, the average U.S. multifamily rents in June increased $19 to another all-time high of $1,706 (up 13.7% year-over-year).  Yardi says the multifamily market continues to perform at extremely high levels…Indeed. “While the U.S. economy will probably show contraction again for the second quarter, multifamily is still poised for strong growth this year. Household formation is expected to increase steadily, even as migration is showing signs of slowing.” Click here to read the full report at Yardimatrix.com.

Numerous media outlets have reported that as of July 1st, the three major credit bureaus are removing paid-off medical debt from individual credit reports.  In addition, according to Marketplace, any new medical bills that don’t don’t get paid right away, will not appear on credit reports for at least a year versus the current six months and, in 2023, unpaid medical debts under $500 will no longer show up on credit reports.  Marketplace also says the the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau (CFPB) is looking into whether any medical bills should ever appear on a consumer’s credit report.  Stay tuned. Click…

New data from Redfin shows that home sales are getting canceled at the highest rate since the start of the pandemic.  They say some buyers are backing out of deals as the slowing housing market gives them more room to negotiate – with some being forced to renege on contracts because of higher mortgage rates.  Data shows that nearly 60k home-purchase agreements fell through in June, equal to 14.9% of homes that went under contract that month. “The slowdown in housing-market competition is giving homebuyers room to negotiate, which is one reason more of them are backing out of deals…Buyers…

A new report form the Mortgage Bankers Association says aging Baby Boomers number an estimated 32+ million people and represent nearly 41% of all homeowners.  Their report asks a critical question;  Who will buy the Baby Boomers homes when they leave them?  They suggest that the aging & eventual death of such a large population cohort will have a major impact on the housing market.  The report takes a deep-dive into an assortment of data that includes housing, aging, and mortality.  To that end they examine the extent to which this demographic shift may affect the supply & demand of…

StorageCafe says there are around 10.4 million residential pools in the U.S. and almost 310K public ones.   They say pools are a coveted amenity for many Americans and are no longer a status symbol but an increasingly common convenience for many, for both homeowners or renters alike.  In fact the the $10 billion pool construction industry has exhibited an annual growth rate of 2.4% since 2017.  With that in mind, StorageCade crunched the numbers of America’s 100 biggest cities to identify the best places for pool lovers.  Be sure to check out their entire list of cities. “Naturally, the popularity…

According to key trends from the 35th annual 2022 Cost vs. Value Report, exterior improvement projects continued a multiyear trend of providing the greatest return on investment (ROI) for homeowners.  In fact, as Remodeling points out, once again 11 of the 12 projects with the highest ROI were exterior improvements and all of these rank within the top 12 projects with the highest ROI. “The Cost vs. Value report aims to answer a specific question: What value does a particular remodeling project add to the sale price of a home? This is only one kind of value that these projects…