Redfin says home prices are surging in several affordable college towns, far outpacing the national market. According to the report, prices in cities such as Morgantown, WV, Syracuse, NY, and Tuscaloosa, AL, are posting double-digit annual gains – more than five times the 2% nationwide increase in May 2026. State College, PA, also stands out, with median prices up 10.6% to $459,050 and homes selling in just five days – which Redfin says highlights strong demand in university-centered housing markets. Interestingly, the most expensive college towns- Santa Barbara, CA, Boca Raton, FL and Flagstaff, AZ are seeing home prices fall.…
Author: Brad Beckett
Brad Beckett
Director of Education & Outreach, National Real Estate Investors Association
The latest S&P Cotality Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA Index has reported a 1.1% annual increase for May, 2026. Their 10-City Composite posted 2.4% increase year-over-year and their 20-City Composite posted a 1.6% year-over-year increase. They say for the 12th consecutive month, U.S. home values fell in real terms, as May’s 4.2% inflation ran roughly 3 percentage points above the 1.1% home price gain. ““The geographic dispersion of home price trends continues to persist…While major metropolitan areas in the Northeast and Midwest recorded year-over-year gains exceeding the national average, many metropolitan areas in the West and Sunbelt regions remain…
The U.S. government is reporting that the national vacancy rates for Q2 2026 were 7.3% for rental housing and 1.2% for homeowner housing. The national homeownership rate for Q2 2026 was 65%. In addition, approximately 89.5% of the housing units in the United States in Q2 were occupied and 10.5% were vacant. Owner-occupied housing units made up 58.2% of total housing units, while renter-occupied units made up 31.3% of the inventory. Vacant year-round units comprised 8.2% of total housing units, while 2.3% were vacant for seasonal use. All of these numbers were pretty close to previous quarters. Click here to…
Realtor.com says although short sales remain relatively rare, they’ve been gradually creeping up as underwater homeowners seek ways to avoid foreclosure, with a handful of mid-priced markets seeing the highest concentration of these deals. Today’s infographic takes a look at short sale top 10 hot spots across the nation. As always, stay safe and have a Happy Friday!!! “Although short sales make up a minuscule share of the national housing market, 10 midsized and midpriced U.S. markets stand out for having the highest concentration of short-sale listings.” Click here to read the full report at Realtor.com.
A recent report from Redfin found that nearly three-quarters (74%) of U.S. homeowners would rather be at home than anywhere else. Their recent survey of 4k U.S. resident (2,280 homeowners & 1,431 renters) asked how Americans feel about their homes and their neighborhoods. Redfin says homeowners were about as likely to agree that their home is a reflection of who they are (74%), and that they feel a sense of belonging in their neighborhood (72%). Indeed…take a look: Click here to read the full report at Redfin.
We love hearing it….and it doesn’t get old; Citing recent data from Gallup, Keeping Current Matters is reporting that more Americans prefer real estate over other long-term investment vehicles for growing wealth – for the 14th year in a row! Overall, when the numbers are broken down, the numbers show that 38% prefer real estate, 20% prefer stocks & bonds, 18% prefer gold, 12% prefer CDs/bank accounts, 4% prefer bonds, 2% prefer crypto and 6% said other. “Think about everything that’s happened in that stretch – rising rates, market swings, election years, you name it. Through all of it, Americans…
On a recent episode of Real Estate News for Investors, Kathy Fettke says AI is creating new opportunities in real estate, but it’s also creating new risks. She breaks down a recent report that shows deepfake fraud and seller impersonation are becoming growing threats in mortgage transactions, and what every real estate investor should do to protect themselves at closing. Click here to listen
Regular readers will know that we cover foreclosure activity on here quite a bit. Citing data from ATTOM, a recent Daily Download from HousingWire listed out 18 years’ worth (2008-2026) of first-half foreclosure data.
A recent report on HousingWire says Russell Vought, the acting director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), recently testified before the House Financial Services Committee, arguing that the bureau has exceeded its statutory authority while lawmakers argue over future of the beleaguered agency. According to the report, Vought defended the CFPB’s workforce reductions and regulatory rollback and urged Congress to place the agency under the appropriations process and limit its discretionary authority. The hearing examined the CFPB’s Spring 2026 report that covered activities for Q3 2024 – required by Dodd-Frank. Click here to read the full story at HousingWire.…
The U.S. Government is reporting that sales of new single-family houses in June, 2026 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 628k, which is 1.6% higher than May’s revised rate but is 5.6% lower than one year ago. The median sales price of new houses sold in June was $398,300 with an average sales price of $475,400. There were an estimated 485k new houses for sale at the end of June representing an 9.3-month supply at the current sales rate. Click here to read the full report at the U.S. Census Bureau.
