Author: Brad Beckett

The U.S. Government is reporting that sales of new single-family houses in December, 2020 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 842k which is 1.6% above than November’s revised rate, but is 15.2% higher than one year ago.  The median sales price of new houses sold in December was $355,900 with an average sales price of $394,900.  There were an estimated 302k new houses for sale at the end of December representing a 4.3–month supply at the current sales rate. Click here to read the full report at the U.S. Census Bureau.

Fortunebuilders reminds us that real estate investors are constantly looking for new ways to find great deals. They say there are several options for investors looking to get ahead of the competition, including short sales, foreclosures, and REO properties.  Today’s infographic takes a look at these options to help answer the question; “Which property type best aligns with my strategy?”  Indeed….. Stay safe and have a Happy Friday!!! “Whether it be an original marketing strategy, a trending lead generation tool, or a negotiation technique to help you move forward, the most successful investors are consistently up to date on the…

According to the latest Federal Housing Finance Agency’s (FHFA) House Price Index (HPI), U.S. house prices were up 1% in November and up 11% 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,…

According to Black Knight’s “first look” report for December, 2020 ended with at least 1.7 million more seriously delinquent homeowners than when it started as well as foreclosures being at a record low.  In addition, they say despite the year-over-year increase, the national delinquency rate saw only modest improvement in December, falling to 6.08% –  the lowest level since April 2020. Click here to read the full report at Black Knight.

We have recently seen two other big mover report their annual moving patterns and now we’re going to take a look at North American’s.  Interestingly, they say that despite being an atypical year, Americans are following similar moving trends as prior years.  One thing that sets this report apart from others is the ability view & compare historic data thanks to their interactive chart.  Also, be sure to check out their first takeaway, which corroborates what we have been seeing for some time. Their key takeaways: People are fleeing California for Texas and Idaho. Illinois, New York, and New Jersey…

After sifting through recent home sales data from the National Association of Realtors, CNBC’s Diana Olick reports that 56% of existing homeowners, that sold their home after March, were in the suburbs, compared to 48% pre-pandemic.  She says this is indicative of the pandemic driving buyers to larger homes in the suburbs.  Indeed… Click here to watch the story at CNBC.com.

The Wall Street Journal (reposted on Realtor.com) is reporting that renters in New York City owe in excess of $1 billion in unpaid rent during the Coronavirus pandemic, according to data from a recent survey.  The WSJ says this figure is the most recent indicator that unemployment benefits & federal stimulus packages have been inadequate to alleviate what they say is a growing financial burden.  Interestingly, they do point out that both landlord and tenant advocacy groups have lobbied heavily for more government rental assistance during the  pandemic.  Indeed… “The Covid-19 relief package passed by Congress in December included $1.3…

The U.S. government is reporting that privately‐owned housing starts in November were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,669,000, which is 5.8% above November’s revised number.  December’s rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 312k.  Privately‐owned housing units authorized by building permits in December were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,709,000, which was 4.5% higher than November’s revised number.  Authorizations of units in buildings with five units or more were at a rate of 437k in December. Click here to read the full report at the U.S. Census Bureau.

With everyone bracing themselves for big changes in national taxes being ushered in with the Biden administration, a new report from the Tax Foundation reminds us that many states had changes in their tax codes that began in the new year.  In fact, 26 states and the District of Columbia had notable tax changes at the beginning of 2021 – many of which were directly adopted by voters in this past November’s election. “Because most states’ legislative sessions were cut short in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, fewer tax changes were adopted in 2020 than in a typical year.…

The National Association of Realtors is reporting that existing home sales were up 0.7% in December to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 6.76 million (up 22.2% from one year ago).  Total housing inventory at the end of December was 1.07 million units, down 16.4% from November and down 23% from one year ago.  Unsold inventory sits at an all-time low 1.9-month supply at the current sales pace with properties remaining on the market for around 21 days. The median existing-home price for all housing types was $314,300, up 13.5% from December, 2019. “Home sales rose in December, and for 2020…