Real Estate
Rising Rents Are Hot But Facts Show They’re Cooling Down
Posted on 19. Apr, 2013 by Marc Courtenay.
Single family housing rents rose once again in the first quarter of 2013. Yet signs are beginning to reveal themselves that the seemingly endless months of rising rents may be coming to an end. The reasons are numerous but the biggest is a marked increase in the supply of rental units.
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Housing Rebound Continues Unabated With New Home Sales Soaring
Posted on 05. Apr, 2013 by Marc Courtenay.
Believe it or not the housing industry is making a stellar comeback. After a collapse in residential construction during The Great Recession which began in 2008, new home construction is leading the housing recovery. The Commerce Department reported on March 19, 2013 that housing starts rose in February to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 917,000.
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Developers Help Buyers Qualify and Home Sales Soar
Posted on 13. Mar, 2013 by Marc Courtenay.
The home-buying market is on fire, especially for newly built houses. New home sales surged almost 29% in January compared to January 2012. This is the highest annual sales rate in four years according to figures released by the Commerce Department on Tuesday, Feb. 26th. Existing home sales also rose in January 2013 by 9.1%. Ironically, even though new houses (new construction) cost buyers approximately 37% more for the same square footage as previously owned houses, it’s the new homes that are selling at the hottest pace.
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As Goes Housing So Goes Property Management
Posted on 30. Jan, 2013 by Marc Courtenay.
It seems like every month we’re reading or hearing about the resurgence in home sales and prices. I’m confident that in most regions of the country the bottom has been established for the housing market, yet it’s good to see more clues (data) that confirm that the housing bust is over for now.
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A Property Managers Dream: An Expanding Number of Rental Houses
Posted on 22. Jan, 2013 by Marc Courtenay.
It’s official! Home prices are on track to have their first yearly gain since 2006. This would make it the strongest year of price growth since home prices began to plunge, reaching their nadir in 2009.
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Three Forces Driving Real Estate Sales and Prices
Posted on 08. Jan, 2013 by Marc Courtenay.
An investor friend of mine called recently to ask if I could recommend some competent property managers in our area. Fortunately I knew of several so I gave him the names plus the pros and cons of each one (my way of being helpful and objective). In the course of our conversation he told me that mid-range houses were being snapped up by income-oriented investors the same day they were put on the market for sale.
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The Rent Index and What it Suggests for Property Managers
Posted on 10. Dec, 2012 by Marc Courtenay.
On almost a daily basis I hear anecdotal reports of syndicated investors as well as rogue opportunists seeking to find bargain houses that they can buy, fix up and rent out. At the same time the number of Americans who can’t qualify for a mortgage or don’t have enough money for a down payment is on the rise.
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Rental Property – How to Project Cash Flows and Returns
Posted on 29. Nov, 2012 by Leonard Baron.
If you are thinking about buying some rental properties as investments, you should probably understand how to project cash flows and evaluate the investment returns you hope to achieve on your hard earned invested cash equity.
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The Case-Shiller Housing Index Moves Higher; Now What?
Posted on 26. Sep, 2012 by Marc Courtenay.
Just when the Federal Reserve needed some incentive to stimulate the economy or inaugurate a new and improved version of Quantitative Easing, the housing market showed yet another sign of rebounding. The S&P Case-Shiller 20-city housing report was issued on August 28, 2012 and it demonstrated yet another monthly improvement in the housing market across the U.S.
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Home Affordability Index Hits Record Level, But Mortgage Supply Tight
Posted on 21. Aug, 2012 by Marc Courtenay.
Whether property managers and their clients will continue to see vacancies drop and rent prices go higher will be partly dependent on how easy it is for people to buy instead of rent. The big U.S. banks are reporting an improving number of applications for mortgages as the housing market searches for a bottom and interest rates hit new all-time lows.
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Mortgage Lenders Under-the-Gun to Reduce Fees and Paperwork
Posted on 09. Aug, 2012 by Marc Courtenay.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is a name you might not have heard of but they wield a good amount of influence and authority in the world of mortgage lending. That’s because they are an official part of the U.S. government and their site is an official government web site.
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The State of the Nation’s Housing 2012
Posted on 01. Aug, 2012 by Marc Courtenay.
There is plenty of good news in this exhaustive report. Home sales have risen, home prices have fallen, and so far the number of vacant rental units (supply) has kept up with the demand. If you’re a rental property owner this report is sure to please in many ways.
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Is the Housing Market Poised for Recovery?
Posted on 10. Jul, 2012 by Marc Courtenay.
According to Standard & Poor’s, home prices actually improved from year-ago levels in seven (7) metropolitan areas. Phoenix, Minneapolis, Charlotte, North Carolina, Denver, Detroit [after falling off a cliff] and Dallas, Texas all saw improvement from March 2011. Phoenix went up 6.1% and the other six areas inched higher by 1.5% to 3.3%.
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The New Profile of the 21st Century House Renter
Posted on 01. Jun, 2012 by Marc Courtenay.
Hundreds of thousands of families across the nation have been faced with the unseemly choice of giving their house back to the lenders or experiencing the dread of foreclosure. More evidence is mounting that less than half of the foreclosures and REO houses have hit the market yet.
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The Potential for a Powerful Recovery in Housing Market Foiled Again
Posted on 22. May, 2012 by Marc Courtenay.
Most of us have heard the proclamations and the headlines emphatically stating “Housing Prices Have Bottomed.” Depending on your region, that may seem correct. Yet there’s an insidious impasse that may capsize this nascent, fragile housing recovery. I’ve been out there looking for houses to buy and potentially rent out for income.
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Will “Uncle Sam” Help Your Clients Buy Rental Properties?
Posted on 06. Apr, 2012 by Marc Courtenay.
First let’s talk about interest rates. Recently the 30-year and 15-year mortgage rates (which are tied to the benchmark yield on the 10-year US Treasury bond) have begun to creep upward. The average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage hovered near historic lows the week of March 12th, making home-buying and refinancing more attractive to those who can qualify.
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Renting: The New “Great American Dream”
Posted on 27. Mar, 2012 by Marc Courtenay.
The old dream for Americans was to save enough money for a down payment on a home that you could own or partly own by qualifying for a mortgage you could pay off over time. My, how times have changed. Many people I speak with still believe in the old dream.
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Importance of Rental Payment History
Posted on 23. Mar, 2012 by Brannan Johnston.
Used in conjunction with credit evaluations and traditional screening methods, rental payment history can go a long way toward filling up an apartment community with qualified renters who pay on time.Resident screening companies love data. To determine whether or not a prospect is worthy of renting an apartment, vast databases are scanned for past purchasing behaviors, job histories, on-time and overdue payments and of course, credit history.
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Timely Trends and Updates for the Savvy Property Manager
Posted on 15. Mar, 2012 by Marc Courtenay.
If you’ve been keeping track of the latest news on real estate, home prices, and the inventory of unsold houses you’re confused, encouraged, or perhaps dubious. For example, in Los Angeles, California the average house price is anticipated to drop yet another 7% during the second quarter of 2012 when compared to the second quarter of 2011. The median home price in the second quarter of 2011 was $343,000 according to a CNN report.
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The Trend is the Property Manager’s Friend
Posted on 22. Feb, 2012 by Marc Courtenay.
This may be the defining year for catapulting your business to a higher level of productivity and financial rewards. What you’re about to read isn’t “feel-good” filler, but careful extrapolation based on current analysis and careful observations. The positive trend for residential rental income properties has accelerated into the beginning of 2012.
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Let Your Clients Know that They Can Be the Bank and Prosper
Posted on 14. Feb, 2012 by Marc Courtenay.
Houses in America are “the best value they’ve been in many generations” according to a housing analyst I interviewed recently. He enthusiastically reminded me that this is the time investors can “…pay below-market prices as banks try to unload properties.” This is a reality in every region of the country right now.
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Trends for Managed Property and Rental Housing
Posted on 07. Feb, 2012 by Marc Courtenay.
This apparently is the beginning of a nationwide trend, according to CNNMoney.com. They also reported that more than 4 million homes have been lost to foreclosure over the past five years. That’s a big inventory to add to the existing numbers of unsold homes, and that foreshadows a trend that will be more like a bottoming-out process on home pricing.
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Top Reasons To Be Optimistic About Real Estate Market In 2012
Posted on 16. Jan, 2012 by Aaron Bosshardt.
Every agent I have has positive feelings about the year 2012. What’s even more shocking is that bank executives I have been talking to are positive for the first time since 2008. If you are a looking to perfectly time a long-term purchase of real estate, then this might well be the year to do it.
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Rental Housing and Apartment Rental Market Trends for 2012
Posted on 04. Jan, 2012 by Marc Courtenay.
The year 2011 will go down in history as the year when the rental housing and multifamily apartment rental markets began to tip in favor of owners and landlords.
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NARPM Florida State Chapter Property Manager Conference 2012
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Marc Courtenay: Thanks for your comment. Please consider sharing t...
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Ryan @ Green Bay Commercial Real Estate: At least in our market (Green Bay) it seems to be ...
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Tammy Davis: Great Advice!...
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Sandy: I have strong doubts that this was a professional ...
