Author: Brad Beckett

Local Market Monitor (a National REIA preferred vendor) recently released their National Economic Outlook for August, 2017 where they share their thoughts on developments taking place in the U.S. economy. National Economic Outlook – August 2017 By: Ingo Winzer If the number of jobs in retail, instead of increasing 2 percent a year, will slowly erode from now on, is this a bad thing for the economy? Retail sales seem to be doing fine, its just taking fewer people to produce those results. From an economic perspective, any efficiency is a good thing. But looking at the larger picture, the…

We’ve had several posts on REI2Day about moving patterns and shifting demographics.  We recently came across this interesting report from smartasset.com looking at where retirees are moving.  They looked at migration data from the census bureau and then compared the number of people 60 and over who emigrated from a city or state (218 cities in all 50 states) and then compared that data it to those who immigrated.  The locations with the highest positive net immigration were determined to be the places where retirees are in fact moving the most.  Indeed… Florida overwhelmingly tops the list, followed by Arizona…..But…

HousingWire is reporting that New York City will provide legal counsel to low-income tenants facing eviction – for any reason.  Under legislation signed into law by Mayor Bill de Blasio earlier this month, NYC became the first city in the nation to provide such an entitlement when receiving an eviction notice.  The mayor expressed his “hope” that this bill will spread to other cities and states across the country.  For purposes of the law, low-income families are defined as those households making less that $50k per year. “It’s impossible to overstate the significance of this on a national level,” said…

Short-term rentals are hot right now – as well as controversial.  In her latest podcast, Kathy Fettke discusses several new startups that turn vacant apartment units into quasi-hotel rooms until they can be rented out.  In other words, making an empty unit contribute to the bottom-line (via Airbnb) until the next occupant moves in. “WhyHotel started experimenting with the idea near Washington, D.C. during the Trump inauguration. The company anticipated a lodging shortage and provided 50-furnished units in a 22-story apartment building called “The Bartlett” in Arlington’s Pentagon City. They were ready by January 13th, in time for the big…

According to the latest CoreLogic Loan Performance Insights Report, 4.5% of mortgages nationwide in May were in some stage of delinquency (30 days or more past due including those in foreclosure).  This represents a 0.8 percentage point decline in the overall delinquency rate compared with May 2016 when it was 5.3%.   In addition, May’s foreclosure inventory rate (measuring the share of mortgages in some stage of the foreclosure process) was 0.7% compared with 1% in May 2016. Those properties in serious delinquency (defined as 90 days or more past due including loans in foreclosure) was 2%, unchanged from April and…

We keep seeing this time and time again;  according to a recent Bankrate.com survey, for the 3rd year in a row real estate is American’s top investment choice.  Right behind real estate we find cash and rounding out 3rd place we find the stock market.  Want to get started in real estate investing?  Visit your local NREIA-affiliated real estate investor association! “If you have a long time horizon, you will win in real estate,” says Abhi Golhar, a 32-year-old Atlanta-based real estate investor who owns and rents out single-family homes. Click here to read the full report.

This shouldn’t come as a shock to anyone, however it is always good to see these numbers in black & white.  The National Association of Realtors’ recent 2017 Housing Pulse Survey found that 84% of Americans say purchasing a home is a good financial decision – the highest since 2007!  Happy Friday!!! Click here to read the full story.

Rental information site Zumper recently released their National Rent Report for August showing that the median national rent for 1-bedroom apartment was $1,176 and $1,399 for a 2-bedroom apartment.  San Francisco continues to dominate their National Rent Index of 100 cities at $3,420/$4500 with Toledo, Ohio rounding out the bottom at $470/$590.  Be sure to take look at their entire data set which analyzes rental data from over 1 million active listings across the United States. Data is aggregated on a monthly basis to calculate median asking rents for the top 100 metro areas by population, providing a comprehensive view…

On August 21st, the entire continent will experience a solar eclipse – some will even see a total eclipse which hasn’t been seen in the US since 1979.  During this natural phenomenon, the moon will completely cover the sun and the sun’s tenuous atmosphere (the corona) can be seen and will stretch from Salem, Oregon to Charleston, South Carolina. Outside this path people will still see a partial solar eclipse where the moon will cover part of the sun.  According to NASA,  the whole continent will experience a partial eclipse lasting 2 to 3 hours and halfway through anyone within…

By now we’ve all heard of so-called “tiny houses.”  But are they a passing fad or do they really have a future?  Recently Curbed.com posed that question in an article “Tiny Houses: Big Future or Big Hype,” where they looked deeper into the industry and talked with advocates about the challenges & opportunities the industry is facing as it struggles to become mainstream. “Most define the tiny home as a building between 100 and 400 square feet (Curbed counts everything under 500 square feet), and many of them are portable. The admittedly loose definition, and the lack of longstanding…