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In this Real Estate News Brief for the week ending November 27th, 2021... the winter forecast for home sales, what investors are doing with their money, and who’s suing lawmakers over real real estate “love letters.” Hi, I'm Kathy Fettke and this is Real Estate News for Investors. If you like our podcast, please subscribe and leave us a review. Economic News We begin with economic news from this past week, and a Fed that’s growing more concerned about inflation. Central bank officials still believe that prices will rise more slowly next year, but they are acknowledging that inflation pressures could last longer than they anticipated because of labor and supply chain shortages. These issues have pushed the yearly inflation rate to a 32-year-high of 6.2%. If you recall, inflation was close to “zero” about a year ago. The situation could prompt the Fed to begin the tapering of its bond-buying program “before” the end of this year. It has been buying $120 billion in Treasurys and mortgage-backed securities as an

In this Real Estate News Brief for the week ending November 20th, 2021... home price forecasts for next year, single-family rent growth, and a new record for build-to-rent home starts. Hi, I'm Kathy Fettke and this is Real Estate News for Investors. If you like our podcast, please subscribe and leave us a review. Economic News We begin with economic news from this past week. The number of people applying for unemployment keeps dropping. Last week, just 268,000 people applied for state benefits. That’s getting close to pre-pandemic levels which were in the low 200,000’s. The number of people already getting state unemployment benefits is also lower. That number dropped to a total of 2.08 million. (1) Home starts were down slightly in October as builders struggled with supply chain issues and a labor shortage. They were down .7% from the previous month, but compared with October of last year, they were up slightly. Single-family starts were down the most, with a 3.9% decline. But there’s a strong demand for ho

The 4% rule is a well-known withdrawal rate for retirees, but a new Morningstar report challenges the current standard, saying it is now “outdated.” The formula for determining how much you should withdraw from your retirement is complicated however, because every person’s financial needs, tolerances for risk, and resources are so different. Hi, I'm Kathy Fettke and this is Real Estate News for Investors. If you like our podcast, please subscribe and leave us a review. Morningstar researchers analyzed the 4% withdrawal rate in a report called: “The State of Retirement Income: Safe Withdrawal Rates.” (1) Their analysis includes forward-looking estimates on portfolio performance and inflation, and determined that the current rate of 4% should be reduced to 3.3%. “The State of Retirement Income” They used a 30-year window of time for their calculations, a 90% probability for success which means there’s a 90% chance you will “not” run out of money during your lifetime, and a portfolio that is split between stocks

Supply chain problems continue as container ships pile up at U.S. ports. The number of ships waiting to offload off the Southern California coast just hit a new record. That’s despite a new 24/7 schedule to get ships unloaded. There’s also a new ‘pop-up container yard’ on the other side of the country to help get things moving. Hi, I'm Kathy Fettke and this is Real Estate News for Investors. If you like our podcast, please subscribe and leave us a review. A record 111 container ships were sitting outside the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach on November 10th. According to an Insider blog, that tops a previous record set on October 21st for 108 ships. (1) Not Enough Dock Workers Consumer demand has been surging and there’s been an effort to speed things up but there aren’t enough dock workers and truck drivers to unload and deliver all the goods. Insider says the size of the backlog is unprecedented. Prior to the pandemic, there may have been as many as 17 ships waiting to unload. And now, it’s typical to se

Amtrak is about to get a $66 billion upgrade that could open up new real estate markets. The funding is part of the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. It’s also the largest amount of government funding for passenger rail in Amtrak’s entire 50-year history. Hi, I'm Kathy Fettke and this is Real Estate News for Investors. If you like our podcast, please subscribe and leave us a review. Amtrak’s CEO Bill Flynn is overjoyed. He had previously laid out a plan for Amtrak upgrades and expansion during the early months of the Biden administration. He told NBC News: “We have a clear vision for how we want to grow our business and reach more of America.” Amtrak Connects US The plan is a 15-year strategy called “Amtrak Connects US.” It calls for improvements to existing rail service as well as expansion into new cities and rural areas. Amtrak says the expansion will reach a total of 160 NEW communities with upgraded service on at least 20 existing routes. According to NBC News, the Rail Passengers As

In this Real Estate News Brief for the week ending November 13th, 2021... the two Fed Chair finalists, the top property investing sector, and the billions earned from a pandemic fee on refinancing loans. Hi, I'm Kathy Fettke and this is Real Estate News for Investors. If you like our podcast, please subscribe and leave us a review. Economic News We begin with economic news from this past week. President Biden is reportedly close to a decision on who he’ll nominate as chief of the Federal Reserve. Fed Chief Jerome Powell’s four-year term is up in February, and it appears that Biden is now deciding whether to keep Powell or replace him with Fed Governor Lael Brainard. Brainard is considered more progressive than Powell. She’s described in a Barron’s article as more “dovish on monetary policy and stronger on bank regulation.” Some Fed watchers also believe that Brainard is more in tune with Biden’s economic agenda, but Powell has strong support from moderate Democrats and Republicans, which gives him an edge ove

In this Real Estate News Brief for the week ending November 6th, 2021… why it’s a “banner year” for homeseller profits, how much an ADU will increase your home value, and which states are attracting the most newcomers. Hi, I'm Kathy Fettke and this is Real Estate News for Investors. If you like our podcast, please subscribe and leave us a review. Economic News We begin with economic news from this past week. The Federal Reserve has announced its “taper timetable.” The Fed is currently buying Treasurys and mortgage-backed securities at a rate of $120 billion a month an economic stimulus. It now plans to reduce that amount by $15 billion per month in November and December, with similar reductions expected next year. If there’s no adjustment to the pace of reductions, the tapering process would be complete by mid-2022. Although the Fed believes the economy is strong enough to begin the taper, Fed chief Jerome Powell says: “We don’t think it’s time yet to raise interest rates.” (1) The jobless rate dipped again t

In this Real Estate News Brief for the week ending October 30th, 2021... the rebound of big city rents, the state and local property tax bonanza, and a tragic reminder to check smoke alarms in rentals. Hi, I'm Kathy Fettke and this is Real Estate News for Investors. If you like our podcast, please subscribe and leave us a review. Economic News We begin with economic news from this past week. The latest report on the GDP shows a big slowdown in the third quarter. The Commerce Department says the economy downshifted from 6.7% in the second quarter to just 2% in the third. (1) The slowdown was expected but the Wall Street Journal had anticipated a beefier 2.8%. Economists say we’re experiencing slower growth because government stimulus money is drying up while businesses struggle with supply chain issues and the nation continues to deal with the coronavirus. Consumers are working and spending money however, which keeps the economy on the growth side. Consumer spending was up .6% in September. (2) And, the latest

Zillow has officially announced the end of it’s iBuying program, Zillow Offers. The announcement comes just a few weeks after the company said it wouldn’t be buying any more homes this year. And then there were reports that Zillow would be offloading thousands of homes at a discount. Hi, I'm Kathy Fettke and this is Real Estate News for Investors. If you like our podcast, please subscribe and leave us a review. The iBuying frenzy has been growing among several competitors including Zillow, Redfin, Opendoor, Offerpad and others. There was a pause in those programs during the pandemic, but the iBuyers were back in full swing this year. And Zillow was one of the more exuberant ones. Home Price Forecasting But Zillow apparently miscalculated the value of the homes it was buying. The company’s financial results show a $304 million write-down for the homes that were purchased for more than it can sell them for. It expects to lose another $240 to $265 million for homes that it is contracted to purchase in the next q

Investors were busy in the second quarter of this year. They increased their share of purchased residential properties. But even though they bought more than consumers, they spent less. So where are these great deals? The RealtyTrac report has a few answers. Hi, I'm Kathy Fettke and this is Real Estate News for Investors. If you like our podcast, please subscribe and leave us a review. RealtyTrac published the results of its analysis with data from its parent company, ATTOM Data Solutions. (1) It found that investor purchases accounted for 15.4% of all U.S. residential purchases in the second quarter of this year. That’s up 3.9% from Q2 of last year when investors accounted for 11.5% of all home purchases. (2) If you compare Q2 to Q1 of this year, investor purchases were about the same. Although the numbers show a year-over-year increase, RealtyTrac’s executive vice president, Rick Sharga, doesn’t believe they represent a significant change of course. But, he says they do disprove the idea that investors are

In this Real Estate News Brief for the week ending October 23rd, 2021... the Fed’s new rate hike schedule, a new wave of foreclosures, and a rent growth surprise for some single-family homes. Hi, I'm Kathy Fettke and this is Real Estate News for Investors. If you like our podcast, please subscribe and leave us a review. Economic News We begin with economic news from this past week with comments from Fed Chief Jerome Powell. It looks like the timeline for interest rate hikes has been pushed up again. Last month, there was more of a debate as to whether it would happen in 2022 or 2023. Powell indicated that conditions for a rate hike would probably be reached next year. That includes the Fed’s goal of maximum employment. The inflation requirement has already been met. That’s when inflation remains above 2% for a sustained period of time. Powell also said that now is the time to begin tapering the Fed’s bond-buying strategy. Policymakers will discuss a tapering plan next month. Jobless claims fell to a fresh pan

If you’re selling your home and you have a green thumb, you might want to plant a tree. Or pay someone else to plant one for you. According to a new survey by Trees.com, some real estate agents believe that just “one” healthy tree can increase property values by 30%. Hi, I'm Kathy Fettke and this is Real Estate News for Investors. If you like our podcast, please subscribe and leave us a review. Trees.com started off as a blog in 1997 which has evolved over time into a shopping site for plants and trees, along with plenty of educational material. (1) The survey was done last month with the help of 1,250 licensed real estate agents, and 78% of them said that poor landscaping has a negative impact on the value of a property. The Value of a Well-Positioned Tree When it comes to the best way of upgrading your landscaping, 59% of the agents said “add a tree.” 20% of the agents said that one tree will increase the property value by 30%. That’s one in five of the agents participating in the survey. If you do the math

It’s a big first for cryptocurrency and real estate. The nation’s second largest lender says it successfully accepted mortgage payments, in crypto, from a handful of borrowers. It was part of a pilot program by United Wholesale Mortgage that was successful, but is now being put back on the shelf, for a later date. Hi, I'm Kathy Fettke and this is Real Estate News for Investors. If you like our podcast, please subscribe and leave us a review. UWM announced the good news this last week. It says that it “successfully evaluated and accepted the first-ever cryptocurrency mortgage payment in September and five more… in October.” (1) It was the first time that any U.S. lender has accepted cryptocurrency as a home loan payment. UWM CEO Mat Ishbia said in the announcement: “As we said last quarter, we were going to look into accepting cryptocurrency and test it to see if it’s a faster, easier and cheaper solution and thanks to our innovative technology team members, the transactions were successful.” But he also said

In this Real Estate News Brief for the week ending October 16th, 2021… more home loans for the self-employed borrowers, a surge in jumbo loans, and a rise in closing costs. Hi, I'm Kathy Fettke and this is Real Estate News for Investors. If you like our podcast, please subscribe and leave us a review. Economic News We begin with economic news from this past week. Inflation ticked higher again. The government reports a .4% increase for September, mostly due to higher prices for food, gas, and rent. That raises the yearly rate of inflation from 5.3% to 5.4% which is more than double what the Federal Reserve considers “ideal.” But the Fed pays more attention to the PCE or Personal Consumption Expenditures index which is lower but still more than double the Fed’s target. Economists, along with the Fed, say that means prices will probably remain high into next year. (1) Well-known stock investor Cathie Woods has her own theory on inflation. She’s the owner of Ark Invest and a collection of stock funds that lean t

Technology is taking big steps in the housing industry with 3D printed homes. Developers are pushing them as “cheaper, stronger, and more efficient” than traditional homes, and the idea is gaining ground. With affordable housing in short supply, energy efficiency becoming a mandate, and the threat of more severe weather-events, 3D printed homes could provide a desirable eco-friendly option. Hi, I'm Kathy Fettke and this is Real Estate News for Investors. If you like our podcast, please subscribe and leave us a review. A husband and wife team are building a 3D printed home in Tallahassee, Florida, that they expect to put on the market next month. It will be a 3-bedroom, 2-bath 1,440 square foot home with an asking price between $175,000 and $225,000. One of the big benefits for this kind of home in a state like Florida is the strength of the building material. Promoters say they will withstand hurricanes and flooding much better than traditional homes. And, they say these homes will also be more resistant to

Manufactured housing appears to be making a comeback. Boosting the supply of prefab homes is a major part of a new government initiative. Factory-built housing is also getting the attention of real estate investors looking for hard-to-get rental homes. Hi, I'm Kathy Fettke and this is Real Estate News for Investors. If you like our podcast, please subscribe and leave us a review. The Biden Administration announced its Housing America initiative last month. One component of that initiative is to increase the supply of manufactured homes. Other components include things like down payment assistance, the rehabilitation of existing homes, new loan options for manufactured homes, and collaboration with local governments to reduce zoning limitations. (1) Prefab Homes Gaining New Respect The manufactured housing component could be a game changer for a market that has so few affordable options. And with improvements to the manufacturing process, prefab homes are losing the stigma they once had for being inferior to s

In this Real Estate News Brief for the week ending October 9th, 2021... new conforming loan limits, self-touring option for home buyers, and a way to save gas when you’re house hunting. Hi, I'm Kathy Fettke and this is Real Estate News for Investors. If you like our podcast, please subscribe and leave us a review. Economic News We begin with two economic reports, from this last week, on the job market. The one for unemployment shows that initial state claims were down 38,000 to 326,000. Economists say it’s a sign of a strengthening labor market. The unemployment numbers keep dropping and are getting closer to pre-pandemic levels, but we’re not quite there yet. Before the pandemic, initial state claims were in the low 200,000s. Ongoing benefits were also down 98,000 this last week, to a seasonally adjusted 2.71 million. (1) The number of people collecting benefits from a total of eight state and federal programs dropped dramatically at the start of the month. They went from 11.3 million last month to just 4.17

The build-to-rent trend is creating intense competition for land. There are reports that land brokers are getting a growing number of calls from investor groups who want to build single-family rental communities. And there’s a limited amount of suitable tracts of land, so competition is fierce. Hi, I'm Kathy Fettke and this is Real Estate News for Investors. If you like our podcast, please subscribe and leave us a review. Forbes just published an article on this build-to-rent “land rush.” It says that for every veteran buyer, land brokers are getting 50 calls from groups who are new to this residential construction niche. BTR “Land Rush” Because there just aren’t enough existing homes on the market to meet investor demand, the build-to-rent trend is gaining traction. And that has off a stampede of sorts, for land. Forbes says that “a site that is well-suited for build-to-rent will typically get between 10 and 25 offers.” This is also a new situation for land brokers. They have traditionally sold to developers

Real estate investors have experienced some big swings in the market over the past decade. We’ve gone from dirt cheap foreclosures after the housing meltdown, to more difficult investing opportunities today. According to a new survey, that’s discouraging many small scale real estate investors, but difficult doesn’t mean impossible. It means you need to be flexible, adaptable, and smart about your choices. Hi, I'm Kathy Fettke and this is Real Estate News for Investors. If you like our podcast, please subscribe and leave us a review. Real-estate data company RealtyTrac conducted an investor sentiment survey among 300 real estate investors from across the country. (1) It shows that 48% of them feel that the investing environment is worse or even “much” worse than it was just one year ago. And it wasn’t that much better a year ago. The same survey shows that 45% felt that way in 2020 during the first year of the pandemic. RealtyTrac defines small scale mom-and-pop investors as those who buy one to 10 properties

In this Real Estate News Brief for the week ending October 2nd, 2021... we’ll look at inflation frustration for the Fed, a mortgage rate surprise, and a new checklist for today’s homebuyers. Hi, I'm Kathy Fettke and this is Real Estate News for Investors. If you like our podcast, please subscribe and leave us a review. Economic News We begin with economic news from this past week, and new predictions about inflation. Fed Chief Jerome Powell says that inflation has been worse than expected because of supply-chain bottlenecks, but he still expects prices to settle back down next year, once those supply-chain issues are resolved. He said during a forum with central bank leaders: “It’s frustrating to see the supply chain problems not getting better, in fact they are probably getting worse.” (1) The annual rate of inflation is about 4.2% right now, according to the Fed’s preferred PCE index. The more popular CPI is about the same. It is currently at 4.3%. When you remove energy and food, the CPI is about 3%. The F