Author: Brad Beckett

Time is the one finite resource that we closely guard and often, carefully choose how we spend it.  Today’s interactive infographic from the Visual Capitalist takes a look at who Americans exactly spend their time with and for how long.  They say that if the global pandemic has taught us anything, it is that humans truly are social creatures with most of us needing community & connection to thrive.  Indeed…..Stay safe and have a Happy Friday!!! “Regardless of who we spend the most time with, the pandemic revealed the importance of human connection to our wellbeing. While many are still…

The NAHB recently released their annual What Home Buyers Really Want report that they say sheds light on the housing preferences of the typical home buyer as well as how those preferences change over time, and how they may vary based on demographic factors.  To get their data, the NAHB commissioned a nationwide survey of 3,247 recent & prospective home buyers in the summer of 2020.  Respondents were carefully selected and weighted to represent the actual universe of home owners in the country, in terms of their geographic distribution, age, income and racial/ethnic composition.  Indeed… “Prior to COVID-19, 26% of…

On a recent episode of the Rent Perfect Podcast, David Pickron says the current tenant/landlord climate feels like a good old-fashioned game of musical chairs. As housing providers anticipate the end of the CDC’s eviction moratorium, it’s critical for landlords to know and prepare for what’s next.  Pickron and his guest discuss the three types of current tenants and how to work with each distinct group to protect your asset and your bottom line. Click here to listen on Spotify.com. (UPDATE 4/13/21)  This podcast was excerpted into an article over at the Rental Housing Journal. Click here to read it.…

According to the latest Federal Housing Finance Agency’s (FHFA) House Price Index (HPI), U.S. house prices were up 1% in January and up 12% from one year ago.  The FHFA produces the nation’s only public, freely available house price indexes (HPIs) that measure changes in single-family house prices based on data that cover all 50 states and over 400 American cities and extend back to the mid-1970s.  The FHFA’s HPIs are built on tens of millions of home sales and offer insights about home price fluctuations at the levels of the nation, census division, state, metro area, county, ZIP code,…

A new rule proposed by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)  seeks to prevent a wave of foreclosures as some pandemic protections for homeowners are set to expire.  According to CNBC, the rule, which would apply to all mortgages federal & private, will prevent mortgage servicers from initiating a foreclosure against delinquent borrowers through December 31, 2021.  The CFPB says 1.7 million borrowers could be at risk of foreclosure when the forbearance program ends in September and this number is higher than anything mortgage servicers have ever seen.  The proposed rule will still need final approval.  Stay tuned. “CFPB’s approach…

Rentable says that the median nationwide rent price for one-bedroom units in April was $1,121 (down 0.27%) with two-bedroom units coming in at $1378 (down 0.29%).  Interestingly, they point out that none of the cities in their top ten loser/gainer lists moved more than 9%.  Be sure to check out their full data set of U.S. cities.  Interestingly, they urge caution about potential inflation: “In our view, loads of stimulus money and a quickly recovering economy equal inflation danger, and that alone will put upward pressure on one- and two-bedroom rental prices.” Click here to read the full report at…

The U.S. government is reporting that total construction spending in February was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1,516.9 billion, which is 0.8% below January’s revised estimate.  However, February’s figure was 5.3% higher than one year ago.  Residential construction was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $717.9 billion in February, which is 0.2% lower than January’s revised estimate. Click here to read the full report at the U.S. Census Bureau.

According to the latest S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Indices, covering all nine U.S. census divisions, the rate of home price increases reported a 11.2% annual gain in January, 2021.  Their 10-City Composite annual increase came in at 10.9% and the 20-City Composite posted a 11.1% year-over-year gain.  The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Home Price Indices are one of the leading measures of U.S. residential real estate prices, tracking changes in the value of residential real estate both nationally as well as in 20 metropolitan regions. “January’s performance is particularly impressive in historical context. The National Composite’s 11.2% gain is the highest recorded…

The National Association of Realtors is reporting that pending home sales were down 10.6% in February, 2021.  The NAR’s Pending Home Sales Index (a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings) fell to 110.3  In addition, they report that year-over-year contract signings were down 0.5%.  Once again, like a scratched-up CD that keeps on skipping, record-low low-inventory is to blame. “The demand for a home purchase is widespread, multiple offers are prevalent, and days-on-market are swift but contracts are not clicking due to record-low inventory,” said Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist. Click here to read the full report at the National…

Sunday, April 4th is Easter…Each year it falls on the first Sunday following the full moon after the vernal equinox.  The date fluctuates each year between March 22 and April 25.   Today’s infographic from the dataviz blog takes a look at “Easter by the Numbers” all the way from the resurrection of Jesus Christ to the number of chocolate Easter bunnies consumed annually.  Stay safe and have a Happy Easter and…..a Happy Friday!!! So what exactly is Easter?  The History Channel says: “Easter is a Christian holiday that celebrates the belief in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. In the New…