Author: Brad Beckett

Which home improvements have the greatest potential return in 2017?  The folks at Redfin put together a list of nine project trends they say will add or subtract value to your home or next flip.  Some of them are no-brainers and a couple are quite surprising.  As always, be sure to do the appropriate research for your particular area….After all, trying to stay one step ahead of market trends is never-ending quest. Redfin’s 9 home improvement projects that add (or detract) value are: Stainless Steel Appliances: A Trend Not Steeling the Show But Holding Steady  Smart Homes: A Trending Smart…

Black Knight Financial Services recently released their November 2016 Home Price Index (HPI) report that said that U.S. home prices were 0.2% for November (5.7% Year-Over-Year).  In addition, prices are now within just 0.3% of a new national peak, with home prices hitting new peaks in six of the nation’s 20 largest states and eight of the 40 largest metros​.  The Black Knight HPI utilizes repeat sales data from the nation’s largest public records data set, as well as its market-leading, loan-level mortgage performance data, to produce one of the most complete and accurate measures of home prices available for…

My Top 7 Landlord Mistakes By Larry Arth For apartment owners, managers and investors, if you have not made any mistakes in your managing and investing – especially when it comes to being a landlord to  tenants- you probably have not been in the business that long or made many investments. Learning from your mistakes so you can master your business is the key to your success. You can learn from other people’s mistakes, so I would like to share mistakes that I have either personally made or have watched investor-clients make. No. 1 – Being too quick to…

What kind of house will $250 million buy you?  Try 12 bedrooms, 21 bathrooms, a 30′ television, an 85′ infinity pool, $30 million worth of cars, and oh, by the way it sits on a hill in Bel Air overlooking Los Angeles.  The LA Times and CNBC recently profiled the most expensive home on the market and it clocks in at $250 million.  We’re not sure the word extravagant even comes close to describing this place….but still, it’s kind fun to look at.  Let’s just say it’s a YUGE deal. Click here to read more & watch a video…

Redfin is reporting that, as of December, 2016, unsold home inventory dropped 12.7% (year over year) –  it’s largest year over year decline in over three years.  This was coupled with the fact that overall home sales only increased 0.5% from one year ago.  However, Redfin reports that the median home sale price rose 4.7% to $267,600 in December – a trend they predict will continue into 2017.  Nearly one third of homes sold in December went under contract within two weeks – a feat not seen since 2010. “We’ve never before seen homes turn over so quickly at a…

The U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development is reporting that sales of new single-family houses in December 2016 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 536k.  This number is 10.4% below November’s rate of 598k and is 0.4% below December 2015. The median sales price of new houses sold in December 2016 was $322,500; the average sales price was $384,000.  The seasonally adjusted estimate of new houses for sale at the end of December was 259,000. This represents a supply of 5.8 months at the current sales rate.  An estimated 563k new homes were…

This week’s infographic is really a no-brainier.  The folks over at association management company REIA Resources recently put this great graphic together illustrating just a few of the awesome benefits of joining a real estate investors association, or REIA as they’re commonly known.  You really do get “a bang for your buck” when you become a part of a local community of real estate investors.  Click here to find a REIA near you! Hat tip to REIA Resources.

CNBC’s Diana Olick is reporting that real estate investors are partly responsible for the 400% surge in Home Depot stock since 2009 – the year the Dow crossed the 10k mark.  She says that as homes fell into disrepair after the foreclosure crisis, investors quickly moved in to make repairs and rehab  distressed properties by utilizing materials & resources that The Home Depot was able to readily provide.  It’s just one more example of the important role real estate investors play in the U.S. economy. “…the home improvement giant has been on a run since more Americans are putting money…

With Super Bowl LI scheduled to take place on February 5th in Houston, Texas, HousingWire recently reported that short-term rental prices have skyrocketed in H-town.  Citing rental rates taken from Airbnb for the last weekend in January versus one week later it’s apparent that property owners are cashing in – one home is listed as high as $6,120 for just one night!  However, when you consider tickets to the Big Game are going for several thousand dollars it puts it in a different context. Click here to read the full story on HousingWire. Click here to see the cities where…

Atlas Van Lines recently released their 2016 Migration Patterns Study providing a snapshot of interstate moves throughout the U.S. and Canada.  They report that in 2016, 26 states registered as balanced (meaning that moves in and out of the states were roughly equal), 15 as outbound, and 9 as inbound, in addition to Washington, D.C.  Idaho was 2016’s inbound highest percentage leader and Wyoming topped the outbound percentage list.  Overall, there were over 75k interstate moves, down from 2015. Top 10 Inbound: Idaho (63%) Oregon (62%) North Carolina (61%) Tennessee (60%) Alaska (59%) Washington (58%) Michigan (57.2%) Washington D.C. (57.1%)…