Articles

Ready to get your read on? Dive into the article archive to help you build wealth through real estate investing. We feature top subject matter experts exploring every facet of the industry.

Articles

Ready to get your read on? Dive into the article archive to help you build wealth through real estate investing. We feature top subject matter experts exploring every facet of the industry.

Doug Duncan chief economist for Fannie Mae says consumers are not yet ready to move on housing

Consumers not ready to move on housing despite improving economy

Americans are becoming more optimistic about the economy, but consumer confidence toward the housing market is lagging, according to results from Fannie Mae's December 2014 National Housing Survey. Likely bolstered by a strengthening employment sector, the share of consumers who believe the economy is headed in the right direction improved ...
2015 real estate outlook from Local Market Monitor

2015 real estate outlook from Local Market Monitor

By Ingo Winzer Local Market Monitor Despite low interest rates, low inflation, and an economy that has steadily expanded, new and existing home sales - and therefore mortgage and home equity lending - have languished. Part of the reason is a high level of consumer debt that keeps many potential ...
Stan Humphries, chief economist for Zillow, gives his 2015 predictions for real estate growth for real estate investors

4 predictions for real estate and investors in 2015

Home value growth will slow to around 3 percent per year instead of the 6 percent seen recently, and that will make real estate less attractive to many investors, says Stan Humphries, chief economist for Zillow. “It's been a tough market for home buyers," Humphries said in a story in ...
real estate a business

7 must-have items that make up a great real estate investment

My investors are always looking for the high performing yields which are found in the spread between the cap rate of a property and the interest rate for a financed property. The spread of the two reflects your positive leverage on the property. Today, with such low interest rates and ...
5 reasons you may find you best investments buying from other investors

5 reasons you may find you best investments buying from other investors

| Larry Arth | Article | Operations
Struggling to find good real estate investments with my Realtor, I was convinced he simply did not understand what I was looking for. So I decided to take a real estate course for the sole purpose of having access to the Multiple Listing Service. By getting my real estate license, ...
HomeVestors passes 60,000 home purchase milestone in 2014

HomeVestors reaches 60,000 home-purchase milestone

HomeVestors continued as the leader in home buying in the U.S.,  passing the milestone of 60,000 homes purchased since the company was founded, according to a release. The company also reported a surge in new company franchisees during 2014 passing the mark of more than 500 in 41 states. Co-Presidents ...
The 10 commandments of real estate investing by Larry Arth

The 10 commandments of real estate investing

Setting goals for 2015 Every year I personally purchase or assist in the purchase of hundreds of real estate investments. Over my 35 years of real estate investing there are things I have learned that work great and have pledged to do again and again. There are, of course, things ...
5 real estate investors indicted for bid rigging at foreclosure auctions

5 real estate investors indicted for bid rigging at foreclosure auctions

A federal grand jury in San Francisco has returned a nine-count indictment against five real estate investors for their role in bid rigging and fraud at real estate foreclosure auctions in the east bay area of California, according to a release from the FBI. The indictment charges northern California real ...
one in seven home appraisals have been inflated by 20 percent or more according to new study

One in seven home appraisals have been inflated, according to new research

One in seven home appraisals done between 2011 and 2014 were inflated by 20% or more, according to data collected by Digital Risk Analytics, a subsidiary of Digital Risk, LLC, and provided to the Wall Street Journal. The mortgage-analysis and consulting firm, based in Maitland, Fla., was hired by some ...
Home price gains continue to slow in latest Case-Shiller Home Price report

Home prices continue slow down through August

Data through August 2014, released today by S&P Dow Jones Indices for its S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices continue to show a deceleration in home price gains. The 10-City Composite gained 5.5% year-over-year and the 20-City 5.6%, both down from the 6.7% reported for July. The National Index gained 5.1% annually ...
Emerging trends in real estate survey lists top 5 cities for real estate investors for 2015 with Texas cities topping the list

Texas wins in the top markets to watch in 2015 for real estate investors

A new survey, looking at the top locations for real estate investment prospects in 2015, has Texas cities topping the list, according to 1,000 leading real estate experts, investors, fund managers, developers, property companies, lenders, brokers, advisers, and consultants who participated in the study. According to  Emerging Trends in Real ...
Tight credit supply for borrowers will be fixed, Watt says

Tight credit supply for borrowers will be fixed, Watt says

Mel Watt, federal housing financing agency director, said in a speech Monday that Fannie Mae , Freddie Mac and lenders had reached an agreement in principle that could expand access to mortgages for many Americans which is good news for real estate investors. Meanwhile mortgage data and analytics firm RiskSpan  ...
Student loan debt may prevent young people from getting mortgages or investing in real estate

High student loan debt stopping some young people from real estate purchases

A new study shows that high student loan debt is stopping many young people from buying houses or investing in real estate as more than 50% of those ages 20 to 29 have student loan debt averaging more than $25,000,  indicating they may continue to have to rent housing for ...
Home equity from Corelogic showing fewer underwater homes

Almost two million homes gained equity and emerged from “underwater” in the last year

 A new analysis shows nearly 950,000 homes returned to positive equity in the second quarter of 2014, bringing the total number of mortgaged residential properties with equity in the U.S. to more than 44 million, according to a release from CoreLogic on PRNewswire.Nationwide, borrower equity increased year over year by ...
5 Tips On Communicating With Your Contractor On Your Rental Property Renovation

5 Tips On Communicating With Your Contractor On Your Rental Property Renovation

At any given time, I have multiple projects running that place me at the service of someone else. It puts me in both a vulnerable and sometimes frustrating position because I know that I can’t do everything and they know that I really need them. So, for this blog I ...
Michael Stoll, UCLA, on moving trends in U.S, in summer 2014

New moving trends study may help investors know where jobs and top rental markets will be

Moving trends studies can help show real estate investors where rental property and jobs may be in more demand, and a new one just released shows Chicago, Washington, D.C., Atlanta  and Dallas were the most popular moving destinations this summer, according to a release from PRNewswire of a study of ...
Americans see owning a home as a safe investment

A majority of Americans see owning a home as a safe investment new poll says

Despite periods of volatility in the real estate market over the past few years, over seven in ten Americans (72%) see owning a home as a safe investment, according to a new Harris Poll released by PRNewswire. Majorities agree on this point across generations, albeit with considerable shifts from one ...
CoreLogic home prices

Home prices nationwide increase 7.4% year over year new report says

Home prices nationwide, including distressed sales, increased 7.4 percent in July 2014 compared to July 2013, according to a new report from CoreLogic.This change represents 29 months of consecutive year-over-year increases in home prices nationally. On a month-over-month basis, home prices nationwide, including distressed sales, increased 1.2 percent in July ...
Home price growth continues to slow in all cities

Home price growth continues to slow in all cities

Home prices across the U.S. continue to slow this year, according to a release from the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index report. The home price index covering the entire nation increased 6.2% in the 12 months ended in June, according to the release. In the past the national index was published ...
young people are renting

New apartment construction jumps 33% as renter nation trend takes hold

Buried in this week's government report on new home construction, is a sharp jump in multifamily apartment building construction of 5 units or more, something real estate investors should be watching. Construction of apartment buildings of this size jumped 33%, the highest level since January of 2006, according to the ...
Home Depot reports strong second-quarter sales and raises 2014 forecast

Home Depot reports strong second-quarter sales and raises 2014 forecast

The nation's largest home improvement chain has reported sales of $23.8 billion for the second quarter of fiscal 2014, a 5.7 percent increase from the second quarter of fiscal 2013. Comparable store sales for the second quarter of fiscal 2014 were positive 5.8 percent, and comp sales for U.S. stores ...
Fannie Mae downgrades outlook for housing this year and next

Fannie Mae downgrades outlook for housing this year and next

A pessimistic Fannie Mae has had downgraded the outlook for the housing market in a new report just released. The mortgage giant says housing activity appeared to have lost momentum at the end of the second quarter and near-term indicators suggest only minor improvement in the second half of the ...
Housing recovery decelerates as 59% of consumers believe the economy is on the wrong track

Housing recovery decelerates as 59% of consumers believe the economy is on the wrong track

Consumer attitudes about the economy have grown more negative but Americans' attitudes toward the housing market remain mixed, although a steady improvement in their personal financial outlook may bode well for housing in the coming months, according to results from Fannie Mae's July 2014 National Housing Survey released by PRNewswire ...
Lower home ownership in future will keep rents higher for real estate investors

Lower home ownership in future will keep rents higher for real estate investors

The growth in renters will continue as the national home ownership rate fell in the second quarter, and a majority of experts said they expect it to fall further in coming years as the Millennial generation delays home purchases and the age of typical first-time homebuyers rises, according to PRNewswire's ...
Zillow buying Trulia bringing together the two largest real estate websites

Zillow buying Trulia bringing together the two largest real estate websites

Zillow has reached a deal to buy Trulia for $3.5 billion making according to multiple reports which would make the combined entity the largest player in the online real estate listings space. The Wall Street Journal and New York Times both reported the deal was agreed to on Monday. “The ...