Bobby Burch
More States Legalize Digital Home Closing Process
Iowa is the latest state to allow buyers to electronically close on a home, continuing a shift across the country to make mortgage transactions more efficient. To close out April, Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds signed a law that enables digital closings for mortgage transactions, digitizing a time consuming and paper-intensive ...
Federal Reserve Votes to Keep Interest Rates Steady
For the time being, the U.S. Federal Reserve is planning to keep borrowing costs steady, the central bank said in a recent announcement. Despite calls from President Trump to lower its rates, the Fed on Wednesday voted unanimously to be “patient” and keep interest rates at its current range of ...
Report: Despite Winter Dip, Real Estate Investors Still Enjoy Nice Profits
Real estate investors across the United States reaped solid dividends from steady price appreciation this Winter, according to a recent report. Home sellers who sold in the first quarter realized an average price gain of $57,500 since purchase — an average 31.5 percent return on the purchase price, real estate ...
Millennial Movers: Here’s Where Young People Want a Home
Millennials are eyeing the middle of the United States for their homes, a recent report found. Millennials are looking at the Midwest not just for its affordable housing, but also strong job markets, according to the National Association of Realtors’ “Most Popular Areas for Millennials: Where They Move and Stay” ...
Bolstered by Low Rates, Economists Offer Cheery Housing Forecast
Lower mortgage rates are spurring some economists to more positively forecast the housing market. Economists with Realtor.com are predicting mortgage rates to average at 4.5 percent by year’s end, which is nearly a percentage point down from their original forecast. And as mortgage rates dip, investors can expect to see ...
A Look at March’s 20 Hottest Housing Markets
Spring home sales may be in a funk, but there are still plenty of cities where homes are selling fast. Spring is typically the most active season in real estate, however, the broader housing market showed signs of slowing in March compared to a year ago despite some “unexpected hot ...
Despite Rate Dip, These Counties Lead Foreclosure Starts
While mortgage delinquency rates continue to decline around the U.S., there are still a handful of counties seeing relatively high rates of foreclosure starts. For the first quarter of 2019, a total of 161,875 U.S. properties began the foreclosure process, which is a drop of 23 percent from the previous ...
U.S. News Unveils Familiar Cities on Best Places to Live
National rankings continue to love the Lone Star State’s capital city. For three years running, Austin, Texas, topped U.S. News & World Report’s annual “Best Places to Live in the USA” list, lauding the city’s vibrant music scene and booming economy. “People are drawn to the Texas capital's music, outdoor ...
Report: Homes with Solar Power Enjoy Solid Value Bump
As the cost of sustainably powering homes continues to decrease around the U.S., more landlords and homeowners are exploring the value of installing solar panels. In addition to curbing emissions, Zillow Research found that within the last year, homes with solar-energy systems sold for 4.1 percent more on average than ...
Flipping Back: New Investor Approach Increases Rate of Home Flips
Real estate investors are fixing and flipping more homes in hopes of quickly turning a profit, according to a recent report. The rate of home flipping has increased on a year-over-year basis for a dozen consecutive quarters, however, investors are going about the process differently since 2002, real estate analytics ...
Report Ranks Homeowners Most Costly DIY Mistakes
In their efforts to save money, some homeowners end up making far more costly DIY mistakes as they try to revamp their properties, a recent report found. In a survey of 1,187 homeowners, Porch.com found a variety of expensive — and avoidable — mishaps that homeowners make as they attempt to ...
Report: Climate Change Will Devastate Unprepared Real Estate Investors
Real estate investors that aren’t preparing their properties for climate change and increasingly extreme weather may face steep costs, according to a recent report from the Urban Land Institute. In 2017, insurers around the world paid out a record-breaking $135 billion for damage to real estate caused by storms and ...
PeerStreet Lowers Minimum Real Estate Investment to $100
The burgeoning peer-to-peer lending platform PeerStreet has unveiled product updates that enable investments of only $100. The company recently announced it’s lowered the minimum investment to $100 for “small balance reinvestments” when using its automated investing product. The upgrade also expands the investment types available for automated investing to include ...
Real Estate Investment Lender CoreVest Soars Past $5B in Loans
Now a top private lender to residential real estate investors across the U.S., CoreVest recently surpassed a whopping $5 billion in closed loans. CoreVest has significantly expanded its loan offerings over the last year, helping to serve a growing client base with a wide range of real estate strategies, said ...
Indiana Lawmakers Firmly Reject Landlord Fee Hike
Landlords in Indiana have an extra reason to smile this Spring. Indiana lawmakers forcefully rejected a measure that would increase the maximum registration fee municipalities can charge rental property owners each year. Senate Bill 171 aimed to increase the highest allowable fee per rental property from the current $5 fee ...
List Prices Hit Record High and Could Continue to Grow
As the Spring selling season picks up, list prices are soaring. The median list prices for homes in the United States spiked to $300,000 in March for the first time ever, according to Realtor Magazine. And even despite a slowing market, it’s likely that list prices will continue to grow, ...
New Home Construction Increases in 7 Big U.S. Metros
To the delight of buyers and real estate investors, new-home construction is starting to pick up in large cities throughout the United States. As more new homes enter the market, home buyers could see expanded inventories and less competition in certain in big metros across the nation, according to data ...
Study Finds Large Metros with Highest, Lowest Real Estate Taxes
Significant changes in tax law mean a world of change for real estate investors. Taking effect in 2018, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is the biggest shift in U.S. tax law since the Tax Reform Act of 1986 and creates several advantages for investors. In addition to a favorable ...
Report: After Big Rate Drop, Millions can Save on Mortgages
After a steep 30-year fixed-rate mortgage drop to close out March, nearly 5 million homeowners could save if they refinanced their homes. In the week ending on March 29, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage fell 22 basis points, from a 4.28 percent average the week prior to and averaged 4.06 percent ...
Hot Neighborhood Targets for Investors Eyeing Opportunity Zones
Created by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, so-called “Opportunity Zones” are providing lucrative prospects for investors to reap tax incentives while also spurring economic revitalization in low-income communities. Opportunity Zones offer investors in about 8,700 lower-income areas a deferral on capital gains taxes and an exemption on ...
Three Habits Builder & HGTV Star Jasmine Roth Swears By
Between building, designing, filming, interviews and traveling, Jasmine Roth’s packed schedule leaves little space for downtime. Now in the midst of filming her second season of HGTV’s “Hidden Potential,” Roth still prioritizes a daily routine that helps her stave off stress, produce energy and stay healthy. Here are three habits ...
Report Finds Best Cities for Vacation Rental Investment
As short-term rentals grow in popularity around the U.S., more investors are eyeing opportunities in the fast-expanding industry. And thanks to a recent analysis from rented.com, real estate investors have more insight into what cities can provide the biggest upside for short-term rental investments. The company, which provides services to help ...
Invest from the Couch: 7 Real Estate Crowdfunding Platforms
Whether you’re looking to cut a seven-figure check or buy a small share of a building, more crowdfunding platforms are entering the world of real estate to fuel the next generation of investing. Leveraging a law enacted in 2013, real estate crowdfunding tools have significantly grown in popularity with dozens ...
Report Reveals Best Counties for Single-Family Rental Investment
As lifestyles and buying behaviors evolve, more people are looking at renting instead of owning a home. In general, Americans are tending to move jobs more frequently, wait longer to buy their first home, and get married and have children later in life — shifts that are creating opportunities for ...
10 Small Towns for Retirees Eyeing Active Lifestyle, Affordability
More retirees are looking for affordable cities in which they can enjoy retirement. 55places.com, a resource for active adult communities in the U.S., conducted a survey that found 62 percent of retirees want to spend less than $300,000 on their next home, and 30 percent want to spend less than ...
