Author: Brad Beckett

New data is showing that housing’s share of the U.S. GDP edged higher in Q1, 2022, while overall GDP growth declined at a 1.4% annual rate.  The NAHB’s Eye on Housing is reporting that housing’s share of GDP increased to 16.7%, coming off of a 14-year high of 17.8% during Q2, 2020.   In addition, they point out that Housing-related activities contribute to GDP in two basic ways.  The first is through residential fixed investment (RFI) – which is effectively the measure of the home building, multifamily development, and remodeling contributions to GDP.  The second impact of housing on GDP is…

According to the latest Yardi Matrix Multifamily Report, the average U.S. multifamily rents in April increased $15 to an all-time high of $1,659 (up 14.3% year-over-year).  Yardi rhetorically asks, is there a slowdown in market rents? Not yet, they say.  Indeed… “Certainly, deceleration will happen, and there are warning signs on the horizon. The U.S. economy unexpectedly contracted by 1.4% in the first quarter of 2022, owing to issues that include surging inflation, ongoing supply-chain issues, shrinking business inventories, and the omicron outbreak in January…” Click here to read the full report at Yardimatrix.com.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics is reporting that the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) was up 0.3% in April, 2022.  However, the all items index was up 8.3% for the 12 months ending in April, continuing a 40-year high streak.  See chart below. “Increases in the indexes for shelter, food, airline fares, and new vehicles were the largest contributors to the seasonally adjusted all items increase.” Click here to read the full release at the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

With inflation now rearing its ugly head, consumers are becoming more price conscious as they see their cost of living being impacted all around them.  In that vein, a recent graphic from Statista takes a look at the nationwide rental market and asks how much living space does $1,500 get you across the country.  Stay safe and have a Happy Friday! Hat tip to Statista.

A new report from Zillow & Rover says dogs are driving consumers housing decisions. They say that more than 60% of dog owners consider their dog’s happiness and well-being for inspiring them to move.  In fact, a slobbering 3/4 of U.S. dog owners reported they’d consider moving to a home that better suits their dog’s needs.  The report identifies the top 20 fastest growing dog-friendly cities in America. To come up with their list, Rover & Zillow looked at newly registered dog-owner accounts from Rover’s database of millions of pet profiles, together with Zillow page views of pet-friendly single-family home…

A recent “Chart of the Week” from the Mortgage Bankers Association illustrates that the expiration of pandemic-related foreclosure moratoriums led to a modest increase in foreclosure starts from the record lows maintained over the past two years.  Citing data from their recent National Delinquency Survey, they said at 0.19%, the foreclosure starts rate remains below the quarterly average of 0.41% dating back to 1979.  The percentage of loans in the foreclosure process also rose in Q1 2022 to 0.53%.  In addition they report that the delinquency rate for mortgage loans on one‐to‐four‐unit residential properties fell to a seasonally adjusted rate…

Apartment List says rents are growing more slowly than they did in 2021, but faster than the growth they observed in the years immediately preceding the pandemic.   For the month of April, their national index was up by 0.9% with Year-over-year rent growth currently up16.3%.  However, over the first 4 months of 2022, rents have only increased by a total of just 2.5%. “Growth has cooled down substantially from last summer’s peak, but the total increase in 2022 to-date is still pacing ahead of the pre-pandemic norm for this time of year.” Click here to read the full report at…

According to the latest CoreLogic Home Price Insights (HPI) report, home prices nationwide, including distressed sales, increased 20.9% year-over-year in March.  On a month-over-month basis, home prices increased by 3.3% in March compared with February.  CoreLogic’s  HPI Forecast predicts home prices will increase on a year-over-year basis by 5.9% from March 2022 to April 2023. Click here to read the full report at CoreLogic.

A recent report from the NAHB’s Eye on Housing says private investment in student housing is on the road to recovery, as the economy reopens and the number of vaccinated people rises.  Citing data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis, they say student housing investment in Q4 2021 was 2.9% higher than the third quarter.  They suggest that pent-up demand for in-person learning has encouraged students to return to campus, which is boosting the student housing sector.  However, they caution that the strength of this recovery remains uncertain. Click here to read the full report at the NAHB’s Eye on…

With interest rates going up and record high home prices, the folks over at Realtor.com took a look at the 100 largest metropolitan areas and found where home prices are doing what recently seemed unthinkable – they’re falling.  They say these dips are because prices grew too “out of whack” with what locals in many Rust Belt communities could afford.  Or, in other cases, it’s not that the same house costs less, rather the lower prices are due to fewer larger homes for sale, which generally fetch higher prices.   They do point out that they believe this is not a…