Author: Brad Beckett

With the 2020 Census happening sooner rather than later, Bloomberg Tax is reporting that investors across the country who’ve been asking officials to expand areas designated as Opportunity Zones might get their chance when Census Tracts are redrawn.  They say that officials from the U.S. Treasury will have to decide how this action will affect these census tracts.  A Treasury spokesperson said that revision gains would “further the goals of the opportunity zone legislation.”  In addition, current projects may need to be grandfathered if their location gets moved outside of an Opportunity Zone tract.   Indeed… “The Census Bureau is…

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 3.2% annual gain in July, virtually the same as June.  Their 10-City Composite annual increase came in at 1.6% and the 20-City Composite posted a 2.0% 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. Click here to read the full report at S&P Dow Jones Indices.

If you’ve been following the Rent Control issue, you will undoubtedly be familiar with current epidemic of “do-something-ism” regarding the issue. Just recently, California’s governor signed landmark Rent Control legislation (even after voters rejected rent control at the polls last year) that limits (among other things) rent increases to 5% per year.  The Manhattan Institute’s City Journal recently posted a short essay called “A Conspiracy of Entitled Incumbents, California’s new rent control law will please homeowners while setting back housing construction and affordability” that quite succinctly sums it all up.  Indeed… “…shambolic housing policies such as California’s latest version of…

Here’s an affordability top-ten city list we haven’t seen before.  The folks over at Realtor.com crunched the numbers to find the top cities in America that tech workers can actually afford.  They looked at the 500 largest metropolitan areas and used at such metrics as the number of people employed in the tech sector, number of tech companies, tech job listings, home prices (nothing over $400k) and several other criteria.  Indeed… [these areas are] “…hidden gems that have it all: tons of good gigs, affordable homes, plus plenty of things outside those doors that will keep your inner geek’s brain…

The National Association of Realtors is reporting that existing home sales inched up in August, marking two consecutive months of growth.  The NAR largely attributed the rise to falling mortgage rates, among other factors, however tight inventory continues to squeeze home prices.  Total housing inventory at the end of August was 1.86 million.  Unsold inventory was at a 4.1-month supply at the current sales pace with homes remaining on the market for an average of 31 days. “Sales are up, but inventory numbers remain low and are thereby pushing up home prices…Homebuilders need to ramp up new housing, as the…

The U.S. government is reporting that privately‐owned housing starts in August were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,364,000. This is 12.3% higher than July’s revised estimate and is 6.6% higher than one year ago.  Single‐family housing starts in August were at a rate of 919k, which is 4.4% higher than July.  The August rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 424k.  Privately‐owned housing units authorized by building permits in August were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,419,000. This is 7.7% above July’s revised rate and is 12.0% higher than one year ago.…

The folks over at FortuneBuilders say that, as a first-time real estate investor, it can be easy to begin to doubt yourself and wonder if you really have what it takes to be successful. However, in today’s infographic they quote real estate mogul Warren Buffett who said “the most important quality for an investor is temperament, not intellect.”  Indeed….Happy Friday!!! Hat tip to FortuneBuilders.

According to the latest Yardi Matrix, U.S. multifamily rents increased in August, coming in at $1,472 with year-over-year growth coming in at 3.3%.  Yardi says multifamily rent growth has remained exceptionally consistent and has been at least 2.7% since the beginning of 2018. Click here to read the full report at Yardimatrix.com.

According to the latest market trends, ATTOM Data Solutions says there were 53,007 U.S. properties with foreclosure filings in August 2019, up 4% from July but down 24% from one year ago.  Their data show that nationwide, one in every 2,554 U.S. properties received a foreclosure filing during the month of August.  In addition, banks repossessed 11,493 properties in August (REO), which was up 4% from the previous month but down 47% from a year ago. Click here to read the full report at ATTOM Data.

Being able to buy a new home or even rent the one you really want depends quite a bit on how much debt one has – especially if you’re just starting out.  The folks over at howmuch.net took a look at America’s student loan debt per capita, by state.  According to their data, outstanding student loan debt has tripled over the last decade to $1.5 trillion, surpassing auto and credit card debt and only second to housing debt.  Wow…. Click here to read more at howmuch.com.