Author: Brad Beckett

Local Market Monitor, a National REIA preferred vendor, recently released their National Economic Outlook for March, 2018 where they share their thoughts on developments taking place in the U.S. economy. National Economic Outlook – March 2018 March 22, 2018 By: Ingo Winzer One reason a lawyer might pay off a porn star with a home equity line rather than a credit card is that interest rates on credit card balances are very high, around 15 percent at a time when inflation is only 2 percent. The high rates are needed partly because banks constantly have to write off credit card balances…

The National Association of Realtors recently reported that total existing home sales were up 3% in February to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.54 million.  The median existing-home price for all housing types came in at $241,700, which is 5.9% higher than February 2017 and marks the 72nd straight month of year-over-year gains. Total housing inventory was up 4.6%, coming in at 1.59 million existing homes available for sale.  This figure is 8.1 percent lower than a year ago and has been falling year-over-year for 33 consecutive months.  Unsold inventory is at a 3.4-month supply at the current sales…

We are indeed an aging nation…..just look around and maybe even look in the mirror.  Last month we saw that America’s population was growing and now the U.S. Census bureau recently released data showing that, for the first time in U.S. history, older people are projected to outnumber children.  But, keep in mind, that no matter what their age, they all need a place to live…and real estate investors are best positioned to meet that need.  Happy Friday!! Hat tip to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Major smoke alarm maker Kidde has issued a recall for nearly 500k dual-sensor smoke detectors in the U.S. and Canada because a manufacturing malfunction can compromise the devices’ ability to detect smoke.  According to Consumer Reports, a yellow cap that was left on during manufacturing that can cover one of the two smoke sensors, posing a risk of people not being alerted to a fire in their home.  The recalled detectors, the PI2010 and PI9010, are dual-sensor that use photoelectric & ionization technology to detect both smoldering and fast-moving fires. Kidde has established a toll-free number (833-551-7739) which is available…

A recent article in the Scotsman Guide discussed how competition for financing has become the latest challenge for home flippers across the nation.  According to the article, the percentage share of financed flips has increased to a 9-year high and along with that, lenders have been fiercely competing to fund their deals.  In addition, they point out that home values have hit new peaks in several markets, which they say is good news for flippers, and that a shortage of low to median-priced homes has also meant listings are selling in less than a month in some markets. “A deeper…

Spring fever: Tips to tidy up for tenants By Lance Allen, Merchant-Cleaning, The Home Depot Spring is a popular time for tenants to move out of rental homes and the perfect time for owners to upgrade and refresh investment properties. Here are tips and techniques that will help you get your properties ready for the rest of the year. Update cleaning equipment While cleaning supplies may not seem like a market rife with innovation, products like the Rubbermaid Maximizer Looped-End Mop feature new technology to help you move faster. The mop provides 30 percent more coverage and weighs 25 percent…

We had several posts about the intestate moving habits of Americans – where they’re moving to/from, why, etc.  However, now we’re hearing more and more that people are fleeing California in droves and heading to lower-cost places like Arizona, Texas and Nevada.  According to a recent report on CNBC, some of the primary reasons include lack of affordable housing and high taxes (go figure?).  In fact, the Census Bureau said that from 7/16 through 7/17 over 138k people left the Golden State for greener pastures.  Good thing we still live in a free country. “…Dave Senser, who lives on a…

Everybody loves a “small town,” right?  The charm, the people, you name it.  A lot of those notions are pure romanticized imagination but there are some aspects of small towns that make them attractive and therefore a great place to live and invest.  The folks over at Realtor.com put pen to paper and sent their folks out to find the best small towns in America where you can find affordable, good-looking housing, safe communities and fun things to do.   They looked at over 500 U.S. cities with populations between 10k-50k and came up with rankings based on items which  include: …

According to the NAHB’s Eye on Housing Blog, nearly 6.8% of single-family homes started (close to 60k) in 2017 qualified as “tear-down starts.”  While this estimated number is down 10.2% from 2016, it is significant because of an ongoing shortage of new entry-level housing, more and more homes that might be considered starter are being knocked down due to the increased value in land.  A tear-down start is defined as a home built on a site where a previous structure or evidence of a previous structure was present before the new home was started. “Between 2016 and 2017, the number…

According to the latest CoreLogic Homeowner Equity Report, U.S. homeowners with mortgages (approximately 63% of all properties) have seen their equity increase by a total of $908.4 billion since the fourth quarter 2016, representing an increase of 12.2%, year over year.  As for Q4 2017, the total number of mortgaged residential properties with negative equity decreased 1% from the previous quarter.  Compared to the Q4 2016, negative equity decreased 21% from 3.2 million homes, or 6.3 percent of all mortgaged properties.  The CoreLogic Homeowner Equity Insights report, is published quarterly with coverage at the national, state and Core Based Statistical…