Author: Brad Beckett

The U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development recently issued a fact sheet to educate housing providers and others involved in housing transactions with information about reasonable accommodations related to assistance animals.  The fact sheet was intended as a supplementary to a webinar titled “Assistance Animals and Fair Housing: Navigating Reasonable Accommodations.” and was prepared by HUD’s Office of Fair Housing & Equal Opportunity (FHEO). Types of Assistance Animals Assistance Animal Assistance animals are not pets. Trained or untrained animals that do work, perform tasks, provide assistance, and/or provide therapeutic emotional support for individuals with disabilities. Can be any common…

The U.S. government is reporting that total construction spending in November, 2022 was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1,807.5 billion, which is 0.2% higher than October’s revised estimate but is 8.5% higher than one year ago.  Residential construction came in at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $868 billion in November, which is 0.5% below October’s revised estimate. Click here to read the full report at the U.S. Census Bureau.

Today’s infographic from Statista says cigarettes just don’t have the same pull factor for young Americans that they used to. In fact, Gallup survey data going back to 2001-2003, says roughly one-third of American young adults said they smoked cigarettes. Fast forward to now and we find just 12% confessed to a smoking habit.  Indeed…  Stay safe and have a Happy Friday!!! “That all being said, the positive news that smoking is on the decline needs to be taken with caution. As Gallup data also indicates, while young adults may be smoking less cigarettes, a significant share appear to have…

Zumper’s 2022 Annual Rent Report takes a deep-dive into past year of data, knowledge of economic trends, Zumper surveys, internal data on renter search, and ongoing conversations with clients, experts, and others in the industry.  They say this intel gives them a comprehensive view of 2022 and a look at what’s to come in 2023. “As 2022 draws to a close, our industry faces a perfect (or, should we say, imperfect) storm of economic conditions causing uncertainty and stagnation. Property owners are coming down from pandemic-era highs of full occupancy and stepping into a precarious new era as they deal…

On a recent episode of Real Estate Underground podcast (Connecticut REIA), host Ed Matthews talks with Margaret Kozlark. co-founder of Noblivest, which helps investors build their wealth for noble causes – such as spending more time with family, volunteering in their community, and more. They are mainly focused on multifamily syndication. However, in the future they hope to expand into other asset classes such as self-storage and mobile home parks. “…What is the difference between passive and active investment?  Is there a difference between Multi-family and single-family homes?  What is much better to fix or flip for a good investment? …

According to an I-Team investigation by WLS-TV Chicago (ABC 7), the City of Chicago has issued tens of thousands of dollars in fines to people who are no longer property owners – including one going back to 1959.  According to the report, Chicago’s Department of Finance said it can only bill people who are listed as owners on record.  They told ABC7 this could happen if the owner has not followed up with a bank or new buyer to make sure the deed has been properly transferred and recorded. Reportedly, according to state law, there is no requirement to record…

The NAHB’s Eye on Housing says homeowner & rental vacancy rates are one of the key statistics used to judge the health and direction of the housing market.  Using 2021 data from the American Community Survey (ACS), they point out that abnormally low vacancy rates signal a greater housing shortage – with U.S. vacancy rates hitting their lowest readings in decades in 2021.  They estimate that 1.5 million units are required to close the gap and bring the current vacancy rates back to the long-run equilibrium levels.  Indeed… “…estimates only evaluate shortages of vacant units needed to bring the current…

Local Market Monitor, a National REIA preferred vendor, recently released their monthly National Economic Outlook where they share their thoughts on developments taking place in the U.S. economy. National Economic Outlook By Ingo Winzer December 30, 2022 New home price data show that the boom is over. Although prices in the third quarter were up 16 percent from last year, they were up only 1 percent from the second quarter. And prices in September were actually down from the peak in May-June. Most local markets are over-priced compared to local income, so the question now becomes whether home prices come down…

Could this be called a “snow premium?”  A recent report from LendingTree (citing U.S. government data) compared the cost of median-priced homes in the states that got the most and least amount of snow in December, 2021.  Interestingly, they found that median-priced homes in the states with the most snow are more expensive, on average, than median-priced homes in the states with the least snow.  Indeed… “As our study illustrates — barring exceptions like Hawaii and California — buying a home in a snowy state is likely to cost more than doing so in a warmer part of the country.…

The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA Index reported a 9.2% annual gain for October, 2022.  Their 10-City Composite annual increase came in at 8% and their 20-City Composite posted a 8.6% year-over-year gain.  The increases in both measures continued to be down from previous months. “October 2022 marked the fourth consecutive month of declining home prices in the U.S….As the Federal Reserve continues to move interest rates higher, mortgage financing continues to be a headwind for home prices…prices may well continue to weaken.”  Said Craig J. Lazzara, Managing Director at S&P DJI. Click here to read the…