Author: Brad Beckett

The latest S&P Cotality Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA Index has reported a 1.4% annual increase for November, 2025.  Their 10-City Composite posted 2% increase year-over-year and their 20-City Composite posted a 1.4% year-over-year increase.  They say the housing market has entered a period of tepid growth: “High mortgage rates continue to cast a long shadow over housing…Thirty-year loan rates hovered in the mid-6% range during November, weighing on affordability even as they eased slightly from recent peaks. This elevated financing cost continues to cap home price growth. Inflation has erased most nominal gains, leaving home values essentially flat…

As you may know, there is a growing (and troubling) “tenants union” movement across the nation.  A recent news story from Cincinnati’s WCPO (TV ch 9) talks with organizers and renters who are among a group that recently joined the Cincinnati Tenants Union to negotiate a new lease with their landlord.  WCPO says their 25-page proposal calls for a 12-month rent freeze for existing tenants and prohibits pet fees and security deposits. In addition, it adopts “just-cause eviction standards” that are common in other cities but are new in Cincinnati. Tenant unions are on the rise in the U.S. because…

We have had many posts about the dangers of cybercrime and how it is perpetrated.  Today’s graphic from Statista illustrates the prevalence of cyber-enabled fraud over the past year.  Their data show phishing (vishing/smishing) which involves tricking users with an email or a voice/text message appearing to come from a trusted third party, remains the most common type of cyberattack to affect businesses.  Indeed….Stay safe and have a Happy Friday!!! As AI-related capabilities and vulnerabilities are accelerating at an unprecedented pace, cyber-enabled fraud continues to proliferate worldwide, with several major cybercrime cases having made the headlines recently. Hat tip to…

Local Market Monitor recently released their monthly National Economic Outlook where they share their thoughts on developments taking place in the U.S. economy. “U.S. job growth slowed significantly in December, signaling potential economic weakness ahead. Federal job cuts, losses in manufacturing and retail, and slowing healthcare hiring point to a softening labor market. With lower immigration and an aging population, the U.S. economy may face slower job creation and weaker consumer demand in 2026” Click here to read more at Local Market Monitor.

According to the latest Cotality (formerly CoreLogic) Single-Family Rent Index (SFRI), U.S. single-family home rental prices increased 1.1% year over year in November, 2025.  They says this increase is a drop-off from the 2.5% increase they saw between November 2023 & 2024.  In addition, they report that rent for high-end properties increased 2% year over year in November, which was a drop from the 2.7% gain recorded in November, 2024.  Low-end property prices showed no annual increase in November 2025, a drop from a 2.8% gain a year earlier. “Rent growth slowed to its weakest pace in more than 15…

On a recent episode of the Rental Property Owner & Real Estate Investor Podcast,  Brian Hamrick talks with Clay Lehman, a longtime investor, property-management expert, and AI educator who helps entrepreneurs and agents use today’s tools to save time, make better decisions, and grow their business. “Artificial intelligence is transforming every corner of real estate—from how we analyze deals to how we manage tenants, leads, and operations. But most investors still don’t know where to start.”  Click here to listen.

According to ATTOM Data’s Year-End 2025 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report, there were 367,460 U.S. properties with foreclosure filings (default notices, scheduled auctions or bank repossessions) – representing 0.26% of all U.S. housing units, up 14% from 2024 and up 3% from 2023.  In addition, new data for December 2025, showed there were 44,990 U.S. properties with foreclosure filings, up 26% from the previous month and up 57% from a year ago. As for REOs;  ATTOM says lenders repossessed 46,439 properties through foreclosures (REO) in 2025, up 27% from 2024 but down 68% from 143,955 in 2019, the last full year…

The U.S. government is reporting that total construction spending in October, 2025 was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $2,127.3 billion, up 0.5% from September’s revised number.  In addition, October’s estimate is 1% lower than one year ago.  Residential construction came in at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $913.8 billion in October, which is 1.3% higher than September’s revised estimate. **  Editor’s Note –  post-gov’t shutdown numbers are starting to roll in, albeit late.  ** Click here to read the full report at the U.S. Census Bureau.

The acting director of the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau (CFPB) recently requested $145 million from the Federal Reserve to fund the bureau’s second-quarter operations.  As reported by the Scotsman Guide, this action in compliance with a federal judge’s recent court order that said the bureau must remain funded as legal battles over its survival continue. “Although I disagree with that opinion and order,” wrote Vought in the Jan. 9 letter addressed to the chairman of the U.S. central bank, Jerome Powell, “pursuant to that opinion and order, I have determined that [$145 million] is the amount necessary to carry out…

The National Association of Realtors is reporting that pending home sales dropped  9.3% in December, 2025 and were down 3% year over year.  The NAR’s Pending Home Sales Index (a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings) came in at 71.8 in December.  They say we’re not out of the proverbial woods, yet: “The housing sector is not out of the woods yet…After several months of encouraging signs in pending contracts and closed sales, the December new contract figures have dampened the short-term outlook.”  Said the NAR’s Chief Economist, Lawrence Yun. Click here to read the full report at the NAR.…