Originally published on May 17, 2021, by William Maher for UrbanLand Magazine.
Real estate economists predict markedly improved U.S. economic and property market conditions over the next three years, 2021 to 2023, compared with the forecast of six months ago, according to the spring ULI Real Estate Economic Forecast.
Originally published on May 20, 2021. by Michael Tucker for Mortgage Bankers Association.
JLL, Chicago, reported the spread between retail property rents and industrial property rents is compressing as home deliveries speed up and e-commerce steals more and more market share from brick-and-mortar retailers.
Originally published on May 26, 2021, by George Ratiu for Realtor.com.
The past year has seen a noticeable seesaw in real estate activity, as markets traversed the challenges of the COVID pandemic. Housing started in 2020 with a significant shortage of new homes and an inventory of existing ones. As 4.7 million millennials turned 30 and embraced homeownership, the demand for homes was driving prices higher at a healthy clip. The mid-March 2020 quarantines put a stop to most transactions, leading to a sharp drop in activity until June. As the lockdowns were lifted, Americans reacted to the trifecta of social distancing, remote work, and dropping mortgage rates by rushing out of downtowns and into suburbs, as well as smaller cities and towns across the country. People focused on communities with a higher quality of life, larger homes, and a more affordable cost of living.
Originally published on May 26, 2021, by Redfin.
SEATTLE, May 26, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- (NASDAQ: RDFN) — Nationwide, 30.6% of Redfin.com users looked to move to a different metro area in April, down slightly from 31.5% in the first quarter but up from 26% at the same time last year, according to a new report from Redfin (www.redfin.com), the technology-powered real estate brokerage.
SANTA CLARA, Calif., March 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Although many people were forced to put activities on hold over the past year, buying a new home was not one of them. The U.S. housing market, buoyed by record-low interest rates, remote work, and Americans' desire for more space, outperformed much of the economy throughout 2020. Today, it remains more lopsided than ever as the gap between buyer demand and supply widens, according to a new report issued today by realtor.com® that examined COVID-19's impact on the U.S. housing market one year after the World Health Organization declared the virus a global pandemic.
“After a run up over the first few months of the year, rates have paused and hovered around three percent since March,” said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s Chief Economist. “Despite this favorable rate climate, there remains a shortage of homes for sale. The lack of housing supply has been compounded by labor disruptions and expensive building materials that are driving up the cost of new housing, making it difficult for homebuyers to find homes to purchase.”
Originally published on May 11, 2021, for Redfin.
SEATTLE, May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- (NASDAQ: RDFN) — Redfin forecasts a record $2.53 trillion worth of home sales in America in 2021—a 17% year-over-year gain that would mark the largest annual increase in percentage terms since 2013. Redfin (www.redfin.com), the technology-powered real estate brokerage, made the prediction in a new report out today. To put $2.53 trillion into perspective, it's roughly equal to the value of Amazon.com Inc. and Facebook Inc. combined, or the 2020 gross domestic product (GDP) of France.
Originally published on May 13, 2021 for Freddie Mac.
MCLEAN, Va., May 13, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Freddie Mac (OTCQB: FMCC) today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS), showing that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 2.94 percent.
Originally published on May 7, 2021, by Quintin Simmons for the National Association of Realtors.
WASHINGTON (May 7, 2021) – The U.S. economy experienced one of the swiftest declines in history last year, followed by a quick and relatively significant recovery in the second quarter of 2020. Speakers at today's Commercial Economic Issues and Trends Forum, held as part of the 2021 REALTORS® Legislative Meetings & Trade Expo(link is external), discussed these historic shifts in the nation's economy over the past 12 months while projecting a favorable outlook for the commercial real estate market in the coming year.
Originally published on April 28, 2021, for NAHB.
Soaring lumber prices that have tripled over the past 12 months has caused the price of an average new single-family home to increase by $35,872, according to new analysis by the NAHB Economics team. This lumber price hike has also added nearly $13,000 to the market value of an average new multifamily home, which translates into households paying $119 a month more to rent a new apartment. Further adding to affordability woes, building material prices have by and large been steadily rising since 2020 and were up across the board in March.
Originally published on April 27, 2021 by Isabelle Novak for Redfin
SEATTLE, April 27, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- (NASDAQ: RDFN) — Prices of urban single-family homes are rising nearly 20% year over year—faster than any other type of home—according to a new report from Redfin (redfin.com), the technology-powered real estate brokerage. But this year's hot housing market doesn't discriminate: Urban condo sales are up nearly 30% year over year, more than any other home type.
Originally published on April 22, 2021. by Quintin Simmons for the National Association of Realtors.
WASHINGTON (April 22, 2021) – Existing-home sales fell in March, marking two consecutive months of declines, according to the National Association of Realtors®. The month of March saw record-high home prices and gains. While each of the four major U.S. regions experienced month-over-month drops, all four areas welcomed year-over-year gains in home sales.
Originally published on April 22, 2021, by ATTOM Staff for ATTOM Data Solutions Blog.
IRVINE, Calif. — Apr. 22, 2021 — ATTOM Data Solutions, curator of the nation’s premier property database, today released its first-quarter 2021 Special Coronavirus Report spotlighting county-level housing markets around the United States that are more or less vulnerable to the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic that continues to impact the U.S. economy. The report shows that states along the East Coast, as well as Illinois, were most at risk in the first quarter of 2021 – with clusters in the New York City, Chicago and southern Florida areas – while the West continued to face less risk.
Originally published on April 21, 2021, by Tom Acitelli for Commercial Observer.
Real estate investors looking for a safe place to park money coming out of COVID might consider the humble car wash. The sudsy byproduct of the automotive age has, in just a few short years, become an unusually durable commercial real estate asset.
Originally published on April 14, 2021, by Isabelle Novak for Redfin.
SEATTLE, April 14, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- (NASDAQ: RDFN) — One in five Americans (21%) believes the increasing frequency or intensity of natural disasters, extreme temperatures and/or rising sea levels are hurting home values in their area, according to a new survey featured in a report from Redfin (redfin.com), the technology-powered real estate brokerage. A comparable share—23%—expect one or more of these factors to hurt local housing values in the next five years, and 12% think values will be negatively impacted in the next five to 10 years. Just over a third (35%) of Americans believe these factors will never diminish home values where they live.
Originally published on April 13, 2021, by Michael Tucker for Mortgage Bankers Association.
The hotel sector is coming back–slowly–from its pandemic-related downturn, analysts said.
Originally published on April 14, 2021, by the Federal Reserve.
This report was prepared at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas based on information collected on or before April 5, 2021. This document summarizes comments received from contacts outside the Federal Reserve System and is not a commentary on the views of Federal Reserve officials.
WASHINGTON, DC – The Fannie Mae (FNMA/OTCQB) Home Purchase Sentiment Index® (HPSI) increased in March by 5.2 points to 81.7. Four of the HPSI’s six components increased month over month, including the components related to homebuying and home-selling conditions, household income, and home prices. The mortgage rate outlook component experienced only a decline, and the latest results indicate that only 6% of consumers believe that mortgage rates will decrease over the next 12 months. Year over year, the HPSI is up 0.9 points.
“The significant increase in the HPSI in March reflects consumer optimism toward the housing market and larger economy as vaccinations continue to roll out, the third round of stimulus checks was distributed, and the spring homebuying season began – perhaps with even more intensity this year since 2020’s spring homebuying season was limited by virus-related lockdowns,” said Doug Duncan, Fannie Mae Senior Vice President and Chief Economist. “Home-selling sentiment experienced positive momentum across most consumer segments – nearly reaching pre-pandemic levels and generally indicative of a strong seller’s market. Consumers once again cited high home prices and tight inventory as primary reasons why it’s a good time to sell. Alternatively, while the net ‘good time to buy’ component increased month over month, it has not recovered to pre-pandemic levels, as the home buying experience continues to prove difficult for many of the same reasons, namely high prices and a lack of supply.”
Originally published on March 30, 2021, by The Conference Board.
The Consumer Confidence Survey® reflects prevailing business conditions and likely developments for the months ahead. This monthly report details consumer attitude, buying intentions, vacation plans and consumer expectation for inflation, stock prices and interest rates. Data are data available by age, income, region and top 8 states.
Originally published on March 30, 2021, by Rebecca Meeker and Nuno Mota for Fannie Mae.
As the COVID-19 pandemic swept across the country in 2020, it touched nearly every aspect of the U.S. economy. In the housing market, new listings, home sales, and residential construction all plummeted in the spring of 2020. In the following months, however, the housing market proved resilient, with home sales and new construction reaching decade highs amid historically low mortgage rates.
