Weekly State of Market

Most all cash buyers are looking for SFR (Single Family Residence)… REALTOR.com recently had an article that listed the

10 Cities With Largest Percentage of Single-Family Homes ...

While it is relatively easy to guess the cities with the lowest per-capita concentration of single-family homes—New York and Philadelphia—you might have a harder time identifying the cities in this top 10.
There’s a definite Midwest flavor to the list. We picked an interesting home to highlight in each town—all of them free from cramped quarters.

1. Wausau, WI (96% single-family homes)
2. Modesto, CA (94%)
3. Green Bay, WI (94%)
4. Decatur, IL (93.9%)
5. Fort Wayne, IN (93.8%)
6. Omaha (93.7%)
7. Lafayette, IN (93.5%)
8. Lima, OH (93.5%)
9. Appleton, WI (93.4%)

It seems at times that it’s an either-or situation when it comes to a healthy housing market with rising home prices and a healthy rental investor market. It really isn’t, but investors have certainly been thrilled lately with the movement of the millennial generation away from buying and toward living with their parents or renting. There’s room for everyone, buyers and renters, but right now it’s still largely a rental society.

First-time buyers know owning is a better investment than renting, but the type of homes first-time buyers are looking for are being kept off the market in part because nationally, those homes are almost three times more likely to be stuck underwater than more expensive homes.

That’s the finding of the Zillow (Z) negative equity report for the first quarter.

The national negative equity rate fell to 18.8% in the first quarter, with almost 9.7 million American homeowners with a mortgage underwater, owing more on their mortgage than their home is worth.

The director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau rolled into Boulder, Colo. with a important message backed by plenty of data.

Citing statistics from a Pew survey, the National Association of Realtors and even the CFPB itself, Richard Cordray said crushing student loan debt is significantly denting the drive to buy homes in young Americans.

"According to an analysis by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, for the first time in at least a decade," he told attendees at the Boulder Summer Conference on Consumer Financial Decision Making, "households with student loan debt are less likely to have a mortgage than those without student loan debt."

Cordray added that according to a NAR survey, 49% of Americans cited student loan debt as a “huge obstacle” to homeownership.

Tip #1. Start out as a lender rather than as an owner. If you’re not highly knowledgeable about the real estate business and you have money to invest, start out by lending money to other investors with a long and proven record for earning profits. You can learn how they succeeded as an investor as well as be comfortable that your money is secured by real property when you have a first mortgage.

Hi Guy's,

I recently read an article that I wanted to share with you and it is pasted below. Real estate is one of those investment vehicles that everyone will invest in no matter what. Whether the market is up or down, buyers market, sellers market, market crashed, it's all good. There is always ways to make money in real estate. Have a read at this article and share your thoughts.

Even after the crash, Americans still love real estate best
By Jeff Macke, Breakout

Five years after a real estate bubble popped in epic fashion, it seems Americans are looking to get back in the trade. According to a recent Gallup poll, 30% of us say real estate is the best long-term investment. Gold and stocks were ranked as the second most popular investments at 24%.

Atlanta is one of the jewel cities of the South, and as a result, this vibrant, in-demand city has real estate that is just as dynamic as the rest of the metropolis.

Atlanta real estate has made long strides in recovering from the recession and housing market crash. The latest housing statistics are evidence of this growth. According to the latest stats, housing prices in the metro Atlanta area were up by 16.8 percent year-over-year, which is a remarkable improvement. Prices did drop slightly by 0.1 percent from December 2013, but such a small variation is expected on a month-to-month basis.

Across the country, foreclosures are on the decline. In some markets, they have continued to decline for over a year straight. Even in harsher markets, foreclosures are dipping with each passing month, evidence that the real estate market across the nation is improving.

Two cities in particular – Milwaukee and Orlando – are examples of what the foreclosure market is doing across the nation as we advance deeper into spring.

City Plans to Sell Milwaukee Foreclosures

This isn’t a political article, as some very knowledgeable economists have indicated that the homeowner mortgage interest deduction really doesn’t help that many lower income owners. However, if you really want to hear screaming and gnashing of teeth from the National Association of Realtors and builder groups, just suggest that the deduction be eliminated or reduced.

Week of March 30, 2014