Author: Brad Beckett

The U.S. government is reporting that total construction spending in May, 2023 was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1,925.6 billion, which is 0.9% higher than April’s revised estimate and is 2.4% higher than one year ago.  Residential construction came in at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $857.4 billion in May, which is 2.2% higher than April’s revised estimate. Click here to read the full report at the U.S. Census Bureau.

What kind of homes are owners and renters living in?  Using data from the most recent American Housing Survey, today’s infographic from the Census Bureau illustrates how owners & renters occupy housing of different types and sizes.  As always, have a safe and Happy Friday!!! Hat tip to the U.S. Census Bureau.

According to Yardi’s U.S. Multifamily Outlook for Summer 2023, multifamily performance remained strong through mid-year 2023, as the robust job market boosted housing demand and rent growth. Yet the market faces challenges related to the potential economic downturn and rising interest rates that have eroded property values and is likely to lead to an increase in distress. “Rents resumed their upward climb in the spring as demand remains positive. We expect moderate 2.5% rent growth in 2023, with gains concentrated in Renter-by-Necessity units since affordability is a growing problem and new deliveries are focused on high-end Lifestyle units…” a

Rental information site Zumper recently released their latest monthly National Rent Report for June, 2023.  According to their data, rent for 1-bedroom apartments was $1,504 (same as May) and the median two-bedroom rent was $1,881 (up 0.3% from May).  Zumper says the 5.8% year-over-year increase in the national one-bedroom rent was the smallest gain in nearly two years.  Be sure to check out their list of the top 100 metro areas. Click here to read the full report at Zumper.

In a letter sent to clients in late June (and at least one real estate tech strategist)  Zillow says they will be closing Zillow Closing Services (ZCS).  Zillow billed their service as; “Close with confidence. Zillow Closing Services is your go-to partner for smooth, reliable closings — with no last-minute surprises.” Indeed, it was a just a couple years ago that they closed their much-hyped Zillow Offers business.  Interestingly, as of this writing, there hasn’t been any announcement about this information on their website. Click here to see the announcement on Michael DelPrete’s LinkedIn post.

According to the latest Federal Housing Finance Agency’s (FHFA) House Price Index (HPI), home prices rose 0.7% in April.  In addition, they report that prices rose 3.1% from April 2022 through April 2023.  The FHFA HPI is the nation’s only collection of public, freely available house price indexes that measure changes in single-family home values based on data from all 50 states and over 400 American cities that extend back to the mid-1970s. “U.S. house prices generally increased moderately in April…However, on a year-overyear basis, house prices in some regions of the country continued to decline.”  Said Dr. Nataliya Polkovnichenko,…

The latest S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA Index reported a 0.2% annual decrease for April, 2023.  Their 10-City Composite decreased 1.2% and their 20-City Composite decreased 1.7%, year-over-year.  However, their U.S. National Index posted a 1.3% month-over-month increase in April, while the 10-City and 20-City Composites both posted increases of 1.7%. “The U.S. housing market continued to strengthen in April 2023…Home prices peaked in June 2022, declined until January 2023, and then began to recover…The ongoing recovery in home prices is broadly based.”  Said Craig J. Lazzara, Managing Director at S&P DJI. Click here to read the…

The National Association of Realtors is reporting that pending home sales were down 2.7% in May, 2023.  The NAR’s Pending Home Sales Index (a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings) came in at 76.5 in May.  In addition, the NAR says year over year, pending transactions fell by 22.2%. “Despite sluggish pending contract signings, the housing market is resilient with approximately three offers for each listing…The lack of housing inventory continues to prevent housing demand from being fully realized”  Said the NAR’s Chief Economist, Lawrence Yun. Click here to read the full report at the National Association of Realtors.

The U.S. Government is reporting that sales of new single-family houses in May, 2023 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 763k, which is 12.2% higher than April’s revised rate and is 20% higher than one year ago.  The median sales price of new houses sold in May was $416,300 with an average sales price of $487,300.  There were an estimated 428k new houses for sale at the end of May representing a 6.7-month supply at the current sales rate. Click here to read the full report at the U.S. Census Bureau.

This Tuesday, July 4th, will mark 247 years of America’s independence!  Today’s infographic takes a look at the Fourth of July “by the numbers” and provides insight into this holiday that we hold dear.  Whatever you do to celebrate, do it safely and have fun…..and, as always, stay safe and have a Happy Friday!!! “The Fourth of July—also known as Independence Day or July 4th—has been a federal holiday in the United States since 1941, but the tradition of Independence Day celebrations goes back to the 18th century and the American Revolution. On July 2nd, 1776, the Continental Congress…