Author: Brad Beckett

According to ATTOM Data’s latest Vacant Property and Zombie Foreclosure Report, zombie foreclosures represent only one of every 12,256 homes in Q2, 2021, which they say are just a minuscule portion of the nation’s 99 million residential properties. The report says 223,671 properties were in the process of foreclosure in Q2 of this year, up 27.5% from first quarter but still down 13.3% from the second quarter of 2020.   In addition, the number of Zombie homes sitting empty (8,078 in Q2) was up quarterly by 21%, and annually by 5.6%. “The latest numbers show a spike in zombie properties…

Realpage.com says that while there is lots of talk about inflation there is some good news – the incomes of apartment renters are rising.  They report that median household incomes for market-rate renters signing new leases jumped to a record high of $64,656 in April 2021 – which is up 5.5% from two years ago.  The data was taken from apartment renter applications from those signing leases each month. Their figures exclude government stimulus money and only includes income from recurring sources. “This is yet another reminder (of many) that market-rate apartment affordability is a non-issue at a macro scale…

Recent data from the NAR’s Economist Outlook say that the share of all-cash sales to existing-home sales surged to 25% in April, 2021 as non-first-time buyers are paying all cash to increase the competitiveness of their offers, edging out first-time buyers.  The data comes from the most-recent Realtors Confidence Index Survey and shows a significant increase from one year ago (15%) and 2019 (20%). According to one REALTOR who offered a comment in the April 2021 survey “Buyers are losing to cash buyers and VA & FHA buyers are hurting.” Another REALTOR said “there is an unprecedented (number of )…

Rentable says that the median nationwide rent price for one-bedroom units in June was $1,146 (up 1.34%) with two-bedroom units coming in at $1404 (up 1.23%).  Be sure to check out their full data set of U.S. cities. Click here to read the full report at Rentable.

The Wall Street Journal (reposted on Realtor.com) says several big cities are pursuing legislation to phase out natural gas for home cooking & heating, citing concerns over global-warming and climate change.  According to the report, some states are pushing back against these bans by outlawing such municipal prohibitions (preemption) because they are overly restrictive and costly.  The first such ban was passed by (as you might expect) by Berkeley, California in 2019. “Arizona last year became the first state to pass preemptive legislation barring municipalities from banning new gas hookups. The Arizona Chamber of Commerce helped lead a coalition of…

The U.S. government is reporting that total construction spending in April was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1,524.2 billion, which is 0.2% above March’s revised estimate.  In addition, April’s figure was 9.8% higher than one year ago.  Residential construction was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $729.2 billion in march, which is 1% higher than March’s revised estimate. Click here to read the full report at the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Visual Capitalist says data shows we consume more media than at any point in time over the last decade.  Today’s infographic reminds us that the way in which we consume media has dramatically shifted toward the online world, versus TV and radio which are trending downward….Indeed….Have a Happy Friday!!! “Disparities in media consumption have a generational aspect that’s worth noting, as well. For instance, older Americans like Baby Boomers still consume media routinely through television. On the other hand, younger cohorts like Millennials and Gen Z tend to consume more through mobile.” Hat tip to the Visual Capitalist.

If you enjoyed watching the hit Netflix show “Schitt’s Creek” here is the listing for you.  According to the Wall Street Journal (reposted on Realtor.com) the 80-acre town of Nipton, California is up for sale.  The town, located on the on the California side of the Mojave Desert, is about an hour away from Las Vegas and is on the market for $2.75 million.  The WSJ says Nipton has seen a variety of prospective buyers, including a group of believers in the existence of a ninth planet who thought it would make a good place to hide out when the…

As of May 31, the SBA’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) was closed to new applicants.  The Wall Street Journal reported that the program closed as funding was on track to be exhausted, marking the end of the $961 billion emergency fund.  The Small Business Administration’s website officially says the PPP ended on May 31, 2021, however, existing borrowers may be eligible for PPP loan forgiveness.  Offered as an SBA-backed loan program that helped businesses keep their workforce employed during the COVID-19 crisis, it was created under the Cares Act in March 2020.  It offered loans that could be forgiven provided…

Redfin says demand may have peaked for 2021 as pending home sales and mortgage purchase applications have both pulled back in recent weeks.  However, their report points out that a record high of 50% of homes sold for more than their listing price, up 23 percentage points from the same period one year earlier.  In addition, a record-high 58% of homes that went under contract had an accepted offer within the first two weeks on the market. “We are seeing some early signs that the market has reached its maximum temperature…Mortgage purchase applications and pending sales have decreased, which may…