Author: Brad Beckett

According to the latest CoreLogic Single-Family Rent Index (SFRI), U.S. single-family home rental prices continue to hold steady in June 2024, with prices posting a 2.9% gain year-over-year.  In addition they report that rental prices for low-end properties were up 1.9% compared to high-end properties where rental prices increased 3.1% year over year. “Single-family rents have been bouncing around their pre-pandemic rate of growth of about 3% this year after growing by double digits for most of 2021 and 2022. At the end of 2023, they did slow to the mid-2% range…While single-family rents are increasing at a stable rate,…

The Tax Foundation says states tax fuel in several ways, including sales taxes, per-gallon excise taxes collected at the pump, taxes imposed on wholesalers (which are passed along to consumers in the form of higher prices), and a variety of operational taxes, such as underground storage tank fees, that are often charged to the retailer.   To that end, they added up all different taxes & fees to calculate a total tax rate on gas for each state – see interactive map below. “Though gas taxes are intended to serve as user fees and pollution deterrents, they vary widely across states.”…

We’ve had several posts about the lawsuit affecting realtor commissions. On a recent episode of Real Estate News for Investors, Kathy Fettke says gone are the days of a casual home tour with a real estate agent you’ve just met. New rules from the National Association of Realtors require a signed agreement with that agent that includes how the buyer’s agent will get paid and what services the agent will provide. In the past, buyers didn’t have to worry about making a commitment ahead of time.  Take a listen…. “…so even though this new law was meant to protect the…

Local Market Monitor, a National REIA preferred vendor, recently released their monthly National Economic Outlook where they share their thoughts on developments taking place in the U.S. economy. Do you have questions that you would like to have answered in the next NEO presentation?  Please submit your questions here. Click here for more information about Local Market Monitor.

A new report from the New York Fed says household debt has risen to $17.80 trillion (up 1.3%) in Q2 2024, according to their latest Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit.  The report says mortgage balances were $12.52 trillion (up $77 billion), auto loans were $1.63 trillion (up $10 billion) and credit card balances came in at $1.14 trillion (up $27 billion).  In addition, homeowners continued to increase balances on home equity lines of credit (HELOC) as an alternative way to extract home equity – these loans rose by $3 billion, marking the 9th consecutive quarterly increase.  Click here…

The U.S. Government is reporting that sales of new single-family houses in July, 2024 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 739k, which is 10.6% higher than June’s revised rate and is 5.6% higher than one year ago.  The median sales price of new houses sold in June was $429,800 with an average sales price of $514,800.  There were an estimated 462k new houses for sale at the end of June representing a 7.5-month supply at the current sales rate. Click here to read the full report at the U.S. Census Bureau.

The National Association of Realtors is reporting that existing home sales were up 1.3% in July to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 3.95 million – down 2.5% year over year.  Total housing inventory at the end of July was 1.33 million units, up 0.8% from June and up 19.8% from one year ago.  Unsold inventory sits at a 4-month supply at the current sales rate with properties remaining on the market for around 24 days.  The median existing-home price for all housing types in July was $422,600.  However, the NAR says affordability is improving, but sales are still sluggish; “Despite…

We posted about this last month, but today’s graphic from Keeping Current Matters perfectly illustrates it (again!);  For the 12th year in a row, more Americans prefer real estate over other long-term investment vehicles for growing wealth.  Indeed….  Stay safe and have a Happy Friday!!! Hat tip to Keeping Current Matters.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) recently released an advisory opinion and research report on a form of home seller financing that is often referred to as contract for deed.  The CFPB says their advisory opinion and report are part of their effort to rid the market of what they say are predatory & exclusionary home lending practices.  Stay tuned… “Contracts for deed – also called “land contracts,” “installment land contracts,” “land sales contracts,” or “bonds for deed” – typically cover the purchase of homes. They are structured such that the seller retains the legal title to a home until…

Here’s an interesting report we’ve never posted about.  Yardi recently started a new report about the RV & boat storage sector, drawing on their database of nearly 2k, dedicated RV & boat storage properties and more than 15k traditional self storage properties that offer parking for rent. According to the report, advertised rental rates for parking units have grown incrementally since February but were down 0.4% year-over-year in June 2024, as demand for new RV and boat sales dropped after annual new supply reached an 18-year high last year. However, they say the sector has outperformed traditional self storage, where…