Market & Trends
The world of real estate investing moves quickly. Catch the must-know news, market information, and trends for the industry here.
Back To: All Topics
Market & Trends
The world of real estate investing moves quickly. Catch the must-know news, market information, and trends for the industry here.
Back To: All Topics
Chinese Investors Still Buying U.S. Real Estate
Although the rhetoric has been heated on both sides as President Trump and President Xi trade threats about various tariffs and taxes to potentially be imposed on each other’s respective countries, Chinese real estate investors do not seem to be too worried about a potential trade war and its effects ...
Top 3 Hottest Luxury ZIP Codes in the United States
New data from Realtor.com indicates that luxury home prices in certain markets around the country are spiraling through the roof, and the trend does not appear to be cooling anytime soon. Researchers combined data on markets where median list price exceeds $1 million and markets where median list prices have ...
Mississippi Investors Plead Guilty to Bid-Rigging
Mississippi real estate investors who agreed not to bid against each other at foreclosure auctions are now facing fines and even jail time. Last week, three more investors pled guilty to designating a winning bidder in advance of auctions and accepting payoffs from each other in exchange for agreements not ...
Floodplain Codes to Change in Houston, Texas
The Houston City Council is hoping to prevent a repeat of the damage the city’s infrastructure suffered in the wake of Hurricane Harvey, and the changes to municipal codes could affect some real estate investors. The council recently passed a new ordinance it designated as “designed to retool and strengthen ...
Millennials Will Spend Nearly $100,000 on Rent Before Turning 30
According to a new study from RENTCafé, Millennials will not only spend more on rent in their first decade as adults; they will also spend nearly half their income on their rental housing. “Many Millennials find renting more affordable and hassle-free than buying,” observed RENTCafé blogger Florentina Sarac. However, she ...
Younger Homeowners May Overestimate Their DIY Abilities
It is not surprising a study of homeowners of all ages indicated older homeowners have more experience with home repairs. What is surprising, however, is the high degree of confidence younger homeowners have in their ability to perform these repairs. According to Porch.com’s recent “Do You DIY” survey, which asked ...
Ginnie Mae Cracks Down on Lenders “Targeting” Veterans
In early 2018, federally owned Government National Mortgage Association (GNMA or Ginnie Mae) threatened a small group of lenders with expulsion from its primary mortgage bond program if the lenders did not address problematic policies Ginnie Mae alleged targeted servicemembers and military veterans. It appears two of those lenders, reportedly ...
New York Mayor Proposes Fine for Retail Landlords with Vacancies
New York City mayor Bill de Blasio is worried about storefront vacancies in his city, and he believes a “vacancy tax” on the property owners might solve the problem. “I am very interested in fighting for a vacancy fee or a vacancy tax that would penalize landlords who leave their ...
“Best States” Ranking Released for 2018
Iowa, a Midwest farm state in the heart of the United States and host of the winter caucuses, takes first place in U.S. News’ recent “Best States” rankings, which assess and rank how well states perform in serving their citizens’ needs. The study considers health care, education, opportunities, the state’s ...
A Surprising New Trend in New Construction
Apparently, no one is calling them “ranch homes” anymore, but that’s what they are. Furthermore, one-level homes are gaining popularity in the homebuying market once again, and developers are taking note. According to Builder Magazine, one-level, ranch-style houses are once again in demand after decades of buyers requiring multiple levels ...
The New York Real Estate Market Already in a Correction
In a city renowned for skyscraper-high real estate prices, property values in many of those skyscrapers are falling. According to a report from Stribling & Associates, median sales price for a New York, New York, apartment has fallen more than eight percent since the first quarter of 2017. Average sales ...
Stock Market Volatility Could Stall Loan Demand
According to the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), total mortgage application volumes are falling. Those applications, which include applications for home purchases and refinancing, fell 3.3 percent last week compared to the week previous even though interest rates remained relatively low. Mike Fratantoni, chief economist for the MBA, blamed stock market ...
Consumer Buying Patterns Continue to Hurt Traditional Shopping Malls
Vacancy rates in large U.S. shopping malls are rising, prompting some analysts to speculate that a shift in shopping mall space usage is coming. As an increasing number of “anchor stores,” such as J.C. Penney and Sears, close their doors across the country, large malls are finding new uses for ...
Renovation Rockstars: Fire Recovery Rehab
When Vernon Vaughan of FairAndFastHomebuyers.com first spotted the promising address on Hubzu.com, he believed he was investigating the purchase of a vacant lot. “I swung by the property on the way to the movies with my twin boys and was very surprised to find a house!” he recalled. “I made ...
5 Markets Where the Middle Class Can Still Afford a Home
If your real estate strategy relies on middle-class buyers being able to afford your properties, then you might want to take a closer look at these metro areas. As the housing affordability crisis looms as the next big issue for our national housing market, an increasing number of would-be homebuyers ...
Appraiser’s Board to Ease Certification Requirements
Property appraisers no longer need a college degree in order to receive their certification, and they do not have to put in nearly as many hours as they used to in order to obtain and maintain that certification, either. According to a recent announcement from the Appraisal Foundation’s Appraiser Qualifications ...
Affordability Still Out of Reach for Median Wage Earners
ATTOM Data Solutions, released its Q1 2018 U.S. Home Affordability Report, which shows that median home prices in Q1 2018 were not affordable for average wage earners in 304 of 446 U.S. counties analyzed in the report (68 percent). The report determined affordability for average wage earners by calculating the ...
Think Realty Magazine April 2018
+ WHAT'S INSIDE Think Realty | News & Events •Member Benefits: Barnett Renovation Rock Stars | Bread-and-Butter House with a Surprise • Fire Recovery Rehab Cover Feature | Perfecting the Art of Anticipation Housing News Report | Finding the Next Reno •The Distressed Discounts Dozen •How Blockchain Could Transform Property ...
America’s Changing Paint Perspective
Conventional wisdom states that real estate investors should stick with neutral paint colors when rehabbing properties to rent out or sell at retail, but it may be time to revisit that time-honored axiom. According to a study released by Think Realty benefit provider Sherwin-Williams, a little more vibrancy in your ...
Investors Benefit from Home Equity Increases
According to CoreLogic’s recently published Home Equity Report, borrowing money to buy a home is paying off for homeowners these days. In 2017, homeowners with mortgages gained more than $15,000 in home equity, the highest growth in home equity in four years. That equates to a cumulative equity in mortgaged real ...
Is Your Seller Violating Privacy Laws?
According to reports from the National Association of Realtors (NAR), an increasing number of home sellers are using their home surveillance systems to monitor showings while they are out. While the desire to see how a showing went firsthand is natural, it could be hurting their chances at selling for ...
Why Texas is Best State for Tax Investors
Dallas, Texas – “Texas is a redeemable tax deed state, and that is the best structure of any state. I’m not just saying that because I’m here in Texas!” began Arnie Abramson, founder of Texas Tax Sales Resource Group in his educational session on Saturday, February 24, 2018, at the ...
Loan Originations Down 19 Percent in Q4 2017
ATTOM Data Solutions, released its Q4 2017 U.S. Residential Property Loan Origination Report, which shows more than 1.9 million (1,903,364) loans secured by residential property (1 to 4 units) were originated in Q4 2017, down 20 percent from the previous quarter and down 19 percent from a year ago. 818,158 ...
3 Tech Hacks for Active Landlords
Dallas, Texas – Sometimes, the simplest things can have the biggest impact, especially when it comes to saving time and money as an active landlord. Active landlords, also referred to as “DIY landlords” by the property managers who specialize in serving them, such as Linda Liberatore of Secure Pay One, ...
The Credit Secret They Don’t Want You to Know
Dallas, Texas – A simple error on a loan application can cause banks and other sources of credit to simply toss your application out without ever evaluating your creditworthiness. “I remember when I first realized there was a game afoot with the credit industry,” said Merrill Chandler, founder, CEO, and ...
