Author: Brad Beckett

According to data recently released by the National Association of Realtors, existing home sales remained steady in August after four months of decline.  However, they also report that sales are down 1.5% from one year ago.  There were 1.92 million existing homes available for sale at the end of August, slightly higher than one year ago.  Unsold inventory is at a 4.3-month supply at the current sales pace.  Once again, lack of inventory is largely to blame: “While inventory continues to show modest year over year gains, it is still far from a healthy level and new home construction is…

The U.S. Government is reporting that privately owned housing starts in August were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,282,000. This figure is 9.2% higher than July’s revised estimate and is 9.4% higher than August, 2017.  Single-family housing starts in August were at a rate of 876k and the rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 392k.  Privately-owned housing units authorized by building permits in August were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,229,000. This is 5.7% lower than July’s revised rate and is 5.5% lower than August 2017. Single-family authorizations in August were…

This Tuesday, September 25th is national “If You See Something, Say Something” Awareness Day.  The U.S. Department of Homeland Security implemented this campaign to engage the public in protecting our homeland through awareness-building, partnerships, and other outreach.  We all must remember that one of the blessings we share by living in a free country means that we have to accept a certain amount of vulnerability.  Remember, if you see something that looks suspicious, something not quite right, say something….Happy Friday!! “Across the country, in our communities, we share everyday moments with our neighbors, family, coworkers, and friends.  We go to…

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recently announced that it was charging a landlord in New Orleans with housing discrimination for publishing an advertisement that discriminated against families with children. The ad included language that stated “No Teenagers Please.”  Below is HUD’s complete release, reprinted here as a reminder to landlords about the importance of the Fair Housing Act: WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced today that it is charging a New Orleans landlord with housing discrimination for publishing an advertisement that discriminated against families with children. The ad, which was…

Where are America’s most expensive ZIP codes for rentals?  Examining this data can reveal a lot about a town or community.  To that end, RentCafe recently compared average apartment rents for all ZIP codes in 130 major U.S. markets using data from the Yardi Matrix.  Ok…but, here’s where it gets interesting;  their research shows that of the top 50 ZIP codes with the highest rent, 26 of them are in New York City’s Manhattan!  Go figure?  However, if you go through their findings it does yield some surprises and offers up some good data…..New York being the exception to the…

This one puts everything into perspective;  A recent “chart of the week” from the Mortgage Bankers Association illustrates how home prices, when adjusted for inflation using the CPI, are still nearly 4% below the second quarter of 2007.  The chart also shows the quarterly average for the NAR’s months supply of existing homes for sale, which is a measure of inventory that accounts for both the pace of sales and the number of homes for sale on that market. “…we are now starting to see signs of deceleration in home prices, as data for the second quarter of 2018 shows…

Where are the best places to live in America?  That’s surely a loaded question and one that Realtor.com recently put to the test for the 2nd year in a row.  They teamed up with Money magazine and looked at over 135k data points at places with populations greater than 50k.  They looked at items that included the overall economic health,  public schools, local amenities, housing, and the cost of living. “For someone who’s starting from scratch, this is a list of areas with great quality of life, healthy housing markets where affordability is important, and great overall community,” says Danielle Hale,…

We all know that when it comes to making purchases, cash is king.  However, when it comes to buying homes, more often than not, there is a loan involved.  A recent article in the Wall Street Journal (reposted on Realtor.com) says that in the city of Detroit the vast majority of buyers are paying in cash – even with rising home prices.  In the first six months of 2018, 87% of all single-family home & condominium buyers paid cash compared with 28% paying cash nationwide.  That being said, the median price of a home in the Detroit was just just…

We have seen this before…Not only do people vote with their wallets but also their feet.  Now, a new report from Redfin details how low-tax states are attracting residents from high-tax states.  Redfin says the trend of people leaving high-tax states for low-tax ones has been underway since 2010 and is accelerating. Interestingly, they report that taxes are three-times lower in the top-10 migration destinations than in the 10 places people are most commonly leaving.  Well, go figure….. “With home prices reaching new heights in many metro areas, it’s no surprise people are continuing to move away from expensive metros in…

According to the latest Yardi Matrix, U.S. multifamily rents rose $2 in August to $1,412 – which they report is yet another all-time high, having now risen 7 months in a row.  Year-over-year in July, rents were up 3.1%.  Yardi says the sector’s performance is highlighted by rising occupancy rates in the face of robust supply growth. “The multifamily market, however, shows no signs of nearing the end of its cycle. While it might be overstating the case to say that the sector is picking up steam, August rent data indicates that deceleration no longer seems to be an accurate…