According to the latest Yardi Matrix, U.S. multifamily rents rose $12 in June to $1,405 – which they report is an all-time high. Year-over-year in June, rents were up 2.9%, a 20-basis-point increase over the previous month. Yardi says the strong performance is a good sign that demand generally is holding up and that robust supply growth is not an impediment to rent growth in most markets. “The resilient U.S. multifamily market demonstrated its strength and consistency in the first half of 2018. Despite headwinds presented by consistent supply growth and lack of affordability in many major metros, rents continue…
Author: Brad Beckett
Brad Beckett
Director of Education & Outreach, National Real Estate Investors Association
More and more older single women are purchasing homes at an increasing clip. This interesting aspect of potential homebuyers was recently reported by the Wall Street Journal and reposted by Realtor.com. Interestingly, the article points out census data showing that, since 1981, single women over 55 have been the fastest-growing demographic of home buyers when compared with several other categories. In 2017, single, older women made up 8.2% of all home buyers, which is nearly double the percentage 20 years ago. Furthermore, these women are buying homes at nearly 2x the rate as their male counterparts. “There have long been…
About a year ago we posted about investors snapping up real estate in pre-hurricane ravaged Puerto Rico. Now HousingWire is reporting that interest in Puerto Rico’s real estate is, again, on the rise with investors capitalizing on the downward trend in real estate prices due to the recent hurricane damage. They cite a recent study by Point2 Homes suggesting that U.S. mainland homebuyers are looking to purchase homes on the island within the next year. In addition HousingWire points out that over the past eight years, PR’s median home sales price dropped 48% from $224k in 2010 to $116,750 in…
Recent data put out by the Mortgage Bankers Association revealed that their Weekly Applications Survey refinance index dropped to its lowest monthly average since December 2000. They cite higher interest rates which have reduced the incentive for borrowers to refinance. The MBA predicts that rates will continue to increase this year, being driven by strong economic growth, a hot job market, and greater inflationary pressures. Interestingly, 70% of refinance activity was for cash-outs: “…Given that rate/term refinancing has declined, the share of cash out refinances has increased, with Freddie Mac reporting that almost 70 percent of recent refinance activity was…
You can’t make this stuff up, although you’ll need to use your imagination to figure out why. According to Montana’s KRTV a woman stole a front-end loader from a construction site across town and drove it through and into a local apartment complex and then proceeded to elevate the front end and crawl into (and back out of) a 2nd floor unit. Along the way she ran over a fence, damaged a car and hit the side a building. There were no reports of injuries and she was later charged with two felonies for stealing the front-end loader and driving…
The recreational aspects of any given area can be a main driver in determining where to live – and we all know how a nice, clean park adds value to any neighborhood. Recently, the folks over at WalletHub looked at the 100 largest U.S. cities to determine the best and worst cities for recreational activities. They looked at metrics such as cost of living, the quality of parks, the accessibility of entertainment & recreational facilities and of course, the climate. Be sure to click on the interactive map below. Here are their top 10 cities: Orlando, FL Las Vegas, NV…
A new report from Zillow says that homes with air conditioning sell for 2.5% more than those lacking this increasingly essential amenity. Renters, too, put a slightly higher premium on air conditioning with the typical rental listing on Zillow (w/central air) renting for 2.8% more than those without. In addition, they report that, nationwide, 66.1% of homes that have air conditioning and for those in the hottest climates – almost all of them; IE 99.1% of homes sold in Las Vegas, and 97.9% of homes sold in Phoenix….go figure? “With summer temperatures hitting record highs across the country, today’s home…
So what motivates millennial renters to take the plunge and buy a home? The folks over at Keeping Current Matters took data from NerdWallet and laid out the top 5 reasons millennials are choosing to buy. The top reason? Control over their living space (93%) followed by followed a sense of privacy & security (90%). Now, let’s go do some flips and find these happy-go-lucky kids some places to buy! Happy Friday!!! Hat tip to Keeping Current Matters.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the median lifespan of Americans is 79 years old. However, as Realtor.com reports, there are many places in the U.S. where people regularly blow right past 80, are healthy and active, and seem to just keep on going.” That’s when they decided to crunch the numbers and find these geographic fountains of youth. They located the top 10 counties where people are living the longest and then listed out what differentiates them from the rest of the nation. “If you want to live a long time, the best thing you…
The National Association of Realtors is reporting that overall pending home sales declined 0.5% in May, marking their 2nd lowest level over the past year. The NAR’s Pending Home Sales Index declined to 105.9 in May which they say was due primarily to a supply issue, and not weak demand. A sale is listed as pending when the contract has been signed but the transaction hasn’t closed, though the sale usually is finalized within one or two months of signing. “Pending home sales underperformed once again in May, declining for the second straight month and coming in at the second…
