Author: Brad Beckett

The economists at Realtor.com recently revised their 2020 Housing Market Predictions to take the Coronavirus Pandemic into account. They issued their update in in Mid-May as a way to gauge the “ups and downs” of the housing markets as it finds its footing in response to the Coronavirus.  Among their predictions; Home price growth will flatten, with a forecasted increase of 1.1% Inventory will remain low, but the rate of decline steadies and the mix of homes for sale shifts toward greater availability of lower-priced homes Mortgage rates remain low and may slide under 3% by the end of the…

Around three percent of all homes in the process of foreclosure are Zombies (sitting empty), according to ATTOM Data’s latest Vacant Property and Zombie Foreclosure Report.  According to the report, there were just over 1.5 million residential properties in the U.S. are vacant, representing 1.5% of all homes.  Of these, there were 258k homes are in the process of foreclosure, with about 7,650, or 3%, classified as “zombie foreclosures” in Q2 of 2020. “The foreclosure and zombie-property picture hasn’t changed much in the second quarter of this year as most lenders are barred from taking action against homeowners who are…

National apartment listing site ABODO recently reported that the median nationwide rent price for one-bedroom units in June was $1,097 with two-bedroom units coming in at $1,344.  They remind readers that pandemic’s effect on nationwide rental prices is still a moving target: “The long-term effects of COVID-19 are still to be seen. If the current recession clears quickly, we anticipate that both apartment construction and demand will resume their recent increases. If the economy enters a prolonged phase of malaise, we could see new construction financing evaporate, and that could eventually put upward pressure on rents because of basic supply…

Rental information site Zumper recently released their National Rent Report for June, 2020 showing that the median national rent for 1-bedroom apartment was $1,217 (down 0.2%) and the median two-bedroom rent was $1,473.   Year to date, both one- and two-bedroom rents were down 0.5%.  Indeed… “…It seems the pandemic has shifted the demand for apartments away from the most expensive cities, since usually demand picks up as we head into summer but now the opposite is true. As more and more companies move into remote work, many renters don’t want to pay the big city price tag when they are…

The U.S. government is reporting that total construction spending in April was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1,346.2 billion, which is 2.9% higher than March’s revised estimate.  However, April’s figure was 3% higher than April, 2019.  Residential construction was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $536.8 billion in April, which is 4.5% lower than March’s revised estimate. Click here to read the full report at the U.S. Census Bureau.

A new report from LendingTree finds that the majority of homeowners approved for a mortgage forbearance may not have needed one.  According to their research, of the homeowners surveyed, 25% applied for forbearance due to a coronavirus-related hardship and 80% were approved.  But here’s where it gets interesting;  While the majority of people who applied were approved, only 5% said they wouldn’t have been able to pay their mortgage without forbearance and 72% of those who received forbearance reported feeling at least a little guilty about it.  In other words, the vast majority of respondents claimed they could’ve made payments…

The National Association of Realtors are reporting that with nearly all states under stay-at-home orders pending home sales dropped 21.8% in April.  The NAR’s Pending Home Sales Index (a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings) dropped to 69.0 with every major region experiencing a drop in month-over-month contract activity.  In addition, they reported that year-over-year contract signings were down 33.8%.  However, the NAR remains optimistic in their outlook.  Indeed…. “With nearly all states under stay-at-home orders in April, it is no surprise to see the markedly reduced activity in signing contracts for home purchases…While coronavirus mitigation efforts have disrupted contract…

Last Fall, our quarterly online survey told us that over 60% of REI2Day readers listen to podcasts – we even feature some on our site!  Today’s infographic from Statista reminds us that podcasts are becoming a pretty big deal.  In fact, they point out that the format’s rise in popularity clearly coincides with a general increase in digital media consumption, specifically on mobile devices.  Indeed….their chart today clearly shows a steady increase in listeners over the last 14 years.  Stay safe and Happy Friday!!! Hat tip to Statista.

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 4.4% annual gain in March.  Their 10-City Composite annual increase came in at 3.4% and the 20-City Composite posted a 3.9% 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. “March’s data witnessed the first impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Indices,” says Craig…

With interest rates at all-time lows, CNBC’s Diana Olick is reporting that mortgage application numbers have risen 54% since early April, which she also says marks the first annual increase since the Coronavirus pandemic.  The cited data is from the Mortgage Bankers Association Market Composite Index, which measures mortgage loan application volume. “The housing numbers just keep outdoing themselves.”  Diana Olick Click here to watch on CNBC.com.