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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 

Foreclosures fall to 10 year low

Foreclosures fall to 10-year low, but some markets still slow to work through the system

| Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends
Foreclosures continued to fall in the first half of 2015, dropping to a 10-year low across the U.S. and further tightening available housing inventory, according to a new study from RealtyTrac.com. While foreclosures are now in some cases below pre-housing-crisis levels, some specific markets still have a higher than normal ...
Lifestyle real estate investing can include vacation homes

3 tips for successful lifestyle real estate investing

| Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends
By The Zillow Team There are three main categories of buying homes as a real estate investment: Cash flow investing — for people whose primary goal is rental income. Equity growth investing — for people whose primary goal is property appreciation. Lifestyle investing — for people whose goals include cash ...
will rising rental rates by landlords cause renters to move and buy homes

Are rising rental rates by landlords encouraging renters to move?

| Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends
By John Burns Rents in the highest-quality apartments rose 4.4% last year, including an 8.0% jump in one West Coast portfolio. With a very high occupancy level (95.8%) and job growth exceeding construction levels in almost every major market in the country, landlords will continue to raise rents throughout the ...
Buy-to-rent still offers many opportunities for real estate investors in many markets a new analysis from RealtyTrac.com shows

New buy-to-rent analysis shows there are still good rental deals for real estate investors in many markets

| Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends
A new buy-to-rent study from RealtyTrac.com shows the average potential annual gross rental yield still is holding strong, and only down slightly from a year ago. “In most areas of the country it is still a great time to buy residential property as rentals, given the continuing slide in homeownership ...
3 market trends for 2015 for the residential real estate investor: a mid-year analysis blog by Kevin Guz

Real estate investing trends so far in 2015 and what is ahead for the rest of the year

| Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends
Our veteran real estate investors and bloggers have some opinions on the trends that have been happening so far in 2015 for real estate investors. Here they review those trends and then give some thoughts on what they see for the rest of 2015. 3 market trends in 2015 for the ...
all cash share of U.S. home sales and purchases drops to lowest level since November 2009 and institutional investor purchases at 15-year low

Housing sales moving from investor-driven “cash is king” to more traditional buyers, new report says

| Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends
The all-cash share of U.S. home purchases in May dropped to the lowest level since November 2009, with institutional investor purchases dropping to a 15-year low, a new report from RealtyTrac.com shows. The cash sales share in May was close to its long-term average going back to January 2000 of ...
Home prices are up and days on the market are dropping

3 market trends in 2015 for the residential real estate investor: a mid-year analysis

| Kevin Guz | Article | Market & Trends, Operations
I write today from my perspective as a HomeVestor franchisee in Dallas, but I will write in broad enough terms that my observations here in Dallas, as an active real estate investor, are consistent with what investors are seeing nationwide. As I explain my observations from personal experience, I will ...
Report on low down payment buyers and affordability in metro markets from RealtyTrac

Best and worst markets for low down payment buyers and what it means for real estate investors

| Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends
A new analysis of low-down payment buyers, such as first-time homebuyers, and boomerang buyers from RealtyTrac.com and Down Payment Resource  ranks 370 counties across the U.S. in terms of affordability and accessibility for these types of buyers and what it means for real estate investors. “This report helps investors identify ...
Bank repossessions fuel foreclosures to the highest level in 19 months as people continue to lose their homes says Daren Blomquist of RealtyTrac

Foreclosure filings by banks jump to a 19-month high

| Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends
Foreclosure filings were reported on 126,868 U.S. properties in May 2015, up one percent from the previous month but up 16 percent from a year ago to a 19-month high, according to a new report from RealtyTrac. The U.S. foreclosure rate in May was one in every 1,041 housing units ...
Stan Humphries, chief economist for Zillow, says more low-end homes will come on the market in 2015.

Logjam at the low end of the housing market is caused by negative equity that is too deep

| Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends
While the U.S. negative equity rate is dropping,  more than four million homeowners still owe the bank at least 20 percent more than their homes were worth, according to a release of the latest report from Zillow real estate research. "It's great news that the level of negative equity is ...
urban infill study for real estate investors by Pete Reeb, John Burns Real Estate Consulting

High-density detached urban infill is a booming real estate business so what are the challenges?

| Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends
By Pete Reeb John Burns Real Estate Consulting Our urban infill feasibility business is booming, thanks to a confluence of trends that are creating heightened interest in high-density single-family detached urban infill housing deals: Gas expense. Uncertainty over gas prices and a growing desire for shorter commutes Time savings. Re-prioritizing ...
Zombie foreclosures down overall but still up in half of the metro areas surveyed says Daren Blomquist of RealtyTrac

Zombie foreclosures down overall, but still up from a year ago in half of U.S. metros

| Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends
A new report shows that in the second quarter of this year there were that 127,021 homes actively in the foreclosure process had been vacated by the homeowners prior to a completed foreclosure, called zombie foreclosures, representing 24 percent of all active foreclosures, according to RealtyTrac. These owner-vacated foreclosure properties ...
Down payment averages drop to 14 percent on new home purchases RealtyTrac report says

Down payment average for home purchases drops to 14.8 percent, a three-year low

| Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends
The average down payment for single family homes, condos and townhomes purchased in the first quarter was 14.8 percent of the purchase price, down from 15.2 percent in the previous quarter and down from 15.5 percent a year ago to the lowest level since the first quarter of 2012, according ...
Rental growth where you least expect it, single-family homes despite the hot apartment construction market

Rental growth where you least expect it: single-family homes

| Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends
By David Guarino Senior Research Analyst John Burns Real Estate Consulting Take a drive through the urban portion of any major city and you will likely see cranes and construction crews dotting the landscape, building what appears to be an endless supply of apartment units. Your eyes are not deceiving ...
Home buyers purchasing below market value in 60 percent of markets according to a new study from RealtyTrac says Daren Blomquist, vp

Home buyers still purchasing below market value in 60 percent of markets, new study says

| Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends
Home buyers in about 60 percent of the markets surveyed in a new report by RealtyTrac.com are buying at below market value, while sellers are getting above-market prices in about 27 percent of the markets, the report shows. “Nationwide in April single family homes and condos sold for almost exactly ...
Bank repossessions (REOs) and foreclosure filings hit an 18-month high according to a new report from Realty Trac

Bank repossessions (REOs) hit 18-month high across the U.S. as foreclosures put new inventory on the market

| Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends
Bank repossessions (REOs) and foreclosure filings were reported on 125,875 properties in April, up 9 percent from a year ago representing an 18-month high, according to a new report from RealtyTrac. The U.S. foreclosure rate in April was one in every 1,049 housing units with a foreclosure filing. “The REO ...
Mortgage loans originated on single-family homes were up 17 percent year over year says RealtyTrac's Daren Blomquist

Mortgage loans originated on single-family homes up 17 percent year over year, new study says

| Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends
Mortgage loans originated on single-family homes and condos were up 17 percent year over year according to a new report from RealtyTrac.com, led by California, Florida and Massachusetts. The majority of the loans were for refinancing and new mortgages for purchases were up only about 1 percent during the same year ...
Strong returns for home flippers in the first quarter yielded an average gross profit of $72,000

Strong returns for homes flipped in the first quarter yield average gross profit of $72,000

| Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends
A new report shows that 17,309 single family homes were flipped — sold as part of an arms-length sale for the second time within a 12-month period — in the first quarter of this year, 4.0 percent of all single family home sales during the quarter, according to RealtyTrac. And, more ...
Foreclosures jump in March driven by bank repossessions

Foreclosures jump in March driven by bank repossessions

| Editorial Staff | Article | Market & Trends
Foreclosures jumped in March recording the first year-over-year increase since 2010 as bank repossessions pushed up the numbers, according to a new study from RealtyTrac. The increase in March was driven primarily by a jump in bank repossessions (REOs), which at 36,152 were up 49 percent from the previous month ...
The best markets for rental rate returns for investors are highlighted in a new report

The best markets for rental rate returns for investors are highlighted in a new report

| Editorial Staff | Article | Market & Trends
A new report ranks the markets with the best, and worst, potential returns on residential rental properties that real estate investors can expect, according to RealtyTrac. The study also shows the most affordable, and least affordable markets, from a renter's perspective. Too, the residential rental property analysis report from RealtyTrac for ...
Home price appreciation slows year over year in 65 percent of metro areas

Home price appreciation slows year over year in 65 percent of metro areas

| Editorial Staff | Article | Market & Trends
Annual home price appreciation in February slowed, compared to a year ago, in 60 of the 92 metros of 500,000 or more population analyzed in a new report from RealtyTrac. “While still significant at 33 percent, the average discount buyers are realizing on distressed homes has been shrinking over the ...
Rise in home prices led by Denver, Dallas and Miami new report says

Rise in home prices led by Denver, Dallas and Miami new report says

| Editorial Staff | Article | Market & Trends
Home prices continued their rise across the country over the last 12 months, however, monthly data reveal slowing increases and seasonal weakness, according to the latest release of the S&P/Case-Shiller home price index report for January. The index, which covers all nine U.S. census divisions, recorded a 4.5% annual gain in ...
Pending home sales jumped in February says Lawrence Yun of the National Association of Realtors

Pending home sales jump in February led by the Midwest and West

| Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends
Pending home sales in February increased to their highest level since June 2013 as sizeable gains in the Midwest and West offset smaller declines in the Northeast and South, according to a release from the National Association of Realtors. The number of contracts to buy, called the pending home sales ...
Texas cities top new list of best markets for real estate investment

Texas cities top new list of best markets for real estate investment

| Editorial Staff | Article | Market & Trends
Texas cities top a new list for best markets for real estate investment, according to a new release from Local Market Monitor and HomeVestors. "The Top 10 markets for real estate investment all have a common thread: a fast growing economy, which means more jobs and more renters," Ingo Winzer, ...
Climbing housing prices have renters feeling the squeeze

Climbing housing costs have renters feeling the squeeze in many parts of the country

| Editorial Staff | Article, Market & Trends
The gap between rental costs and household income is widening to unsustainable levels in many parts of the country, and the situation could worsen unless new home construction meaningfully rises, according to a release of new research by the National Association of Realtors. NAR reviewed data on income growth, housing ...