Author: Brad Beckett

Hoarding has been around in many forms since the beginning of time.  Most recently, reality TV has shed light & attention on the problem while many landlords have stories they will readily share about that “one tenant.”  In that vein, the New York Times recently featured an interesting article entitled “Helping Those Who Hoard” that focused on apartment buildings in New York City and how property managers are dealing with this important issue.  Specifically, they cite the phenomenon as a mental illness which has to be carefully addressed – which is why the NY Times reports that many building managers…

Black Knight Financial Services recently reported that America’s underwater borrower population has fallen below two million for first time since 2006.  They found that rising home prices have both decreased the number of borrowers underwater on their mortgages while increasing the amount of “tappable or lendable” equity available to homeowners.  The data is from their First Look report for May 2017, which is taken from month-end mortgage performance statistics derived from its loan-level database representing the majority of the national mortgage market. According to the report: The number of underwater borrowers declined by 16% in the first three months of…

What are the top cities in America for whiskey lovers?  Redfin recently sought to answer that very question and came up with a list of the top 12 cities enjoy a glass.  To get their list they utilized a collection of curated rankings lists from across the internet and a variety of publishers and considered a few key factors in developing a weighted points system.  Frequently-listed whiskey bars earned their cities points based on the number of times they were mentioned, and critically-loved whiskey bars weighted higher than those that were frequently listed.  Either way….it’s another fun list that also…

It’s now mid-summer and people all across the fruited plain are either vacation or thinking about an upcoming trip and odds are they’re going to be paying someone else for the privilege of using that rental for the week.  The folks over at Fortune Builders recently put together this handy 8-step graphic about buying and renting out a summer vacation rental.  Remember, always do your due diligence……Happy Friday!!! Hat tip to FortuneBuilders.

What is an empty-nest baby boomer to do with all those extra rooms and free space?  That’s the problem a new app called Nesterly seeks to solve.  Basically, it helps these older homeowners with extra room connect with college students in need of housing.  Interestingly, Nesterly even says renters can “…pay part of their rent by helping around the house…”  We can imagine that cutting the grass is high on that list of barterable chores. “Think Airbnb meets Angie’s List. For the older users, Nesterly will serve as a service app through which homeowners can search for potential renters based…

We’ve had several posts here on REI2Day about maximizing your ROI when renovating a property.  On a recent Real Estate News for Investors podcast, Kathy Fettke discusses why it’s important to have a good grasp of the numbers and know which improvements will give you the best “bang for your buck.” Click here to hear more Real Estate News for Investors.

Remember McMansions?  You know, those huge homes with large large foyers and chandeliers that oozed of wealth, but were really made with cheap building materials.  Well, according to a recent article on Newsweek.com they’re making a comeback.  In fact, they go so far as to say they’re a potential harbinger of another housing bubble due to their price run-up since the crash.  Whether this is true or not, the numbers are certainly interesting when you consider that a lot of today’s price appreciation is due to record-low levels of inventory –  a factor not experienced during the run-up to the…

Quite frankly (especially in light of a recent record low rate of 3.88%)  it’s hard to imagine that the interest rate for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage once hovered close to 20%…..but, it’s true.  To help refresh our memory, the folks over at Keeping Current Matters recently put together a chart illustrating the past 45 years’ worth of interest rates from Freddie Mac for the venerable 30-year fixed rate loan. Putting it all in context: Click here to read the full story on Keeping Current Matters.

Realty Check’s Diana Olick is reporting that two major changes in the mortgage market go into effect this month that, while helping more borrowers qualify for home loans, will also add more risk to the mortgage market.  According to the report, three major credit rating agencies (Equifax, TransUnion and Experian) will drop tax liens and civil judgments from some consumers’ profiles if the information isn’t complete and Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac will allow borrowers to have higher levels of debt and still qualify for a mortgage.  She says these two major lending changes mean it’s “suddenly easier to get…

Across the country, the remodeling business is a big right now, just ask The Home Depot.  Recently, property data provider BuildFax released a study detailing remodeling activity over the last several years as well as identifying potential trends.  They use three unique perspectives;  historical, national, and regional to provide their overview.  Interestingly, they say 2016 saw changes in remodeling’s growth rate and spending that could have a serious impact on the business. Some key takeaways: • Since 2011, home remodeling has increased by an annualized 5% per year on average • Residential remodeling increased 4.3% last year, which is a…