Remodeling Magazine recently released their 32nd annual Cost vs. Value Reportcomparing remodeling projects & upgrades with the value they retain when the property is sold in 136 U.S. housing markets. It’s all about the ROI…
“While the overall changes since last year are modest, the 2019 Cost vs. Value report reflects the robust market that the remodeling industry has enjoyed over the past year. All projects covered in the report show an increase in value over the previous year…”
Realty Check’s Diana Olick says that while demand is ticking up for housing, thanks to lower interest rates, there are just too few entry-level homes for sale. She points out that the homes Homebuilders are building are largely in the move-up and luxury sectors, not entry level. Indeed….
“Affordability is still an obstacle…The trouble is that while there are more houses coming on the market, and prices are easing slightly, there are still not enough affordable homes for sale. Supply is increasing largely because homes are sitting on the market longer.”
Click here to watch State of the Housing Market on CNBC.
Existing home sales might be dropping overall but that doesn’t mean it’s happening everywhere. Realtor.com recently took a look at the nation’s largest 200 markets and identified the top 10 that were skyrocketing. They say that these strongest housing markets have “so far have eluded the shifting tides, with double-digit annual price growth.” Be sure to check out the story as it goes into particular detail about each city and why it made their top ten list.
“Even with the deceleration in home price increases … we are still seeing strong home buying in smaller metros that have good affordability and solid job growth,” says Frank Nothaft, the chief economist at Corelogic, a real estate data firm.
The top 10 skyrocketing housing markets are:
If a tenant has frozen pipes and calls the landlord or property manager to come fix the issue, who is supposed to pay for the maintenance? Veteran landlord and property manager Hank Rossi answers questions like this and many more from landlords and property managers around the country about their rentals.
We just had pipes freeze for the first time in one of our rentals this week. Tenants called to report, so I sent guy who handles our maintenance out to thaw the pipes, but who should pay for this maintenance call? Seems tenants should have been proactive but we had nothing in the lease saying so. Whose fault is this? How do you handle this issue?
-Landlady Eileen
This is a tricky one.
I don’t know where your rental property is located. Do you have severe winters every year or is this a freezing weather unusual?
Are the tenants warm weather transplants that have no knowledge of cold weather problems or should they be expected to know how to handle these temps and effects on water and pipes?
Where did the freeze occur and could it have been avoided if tenants kept heat on and water dripping with cabinet doors open (so warm air can circulate more easily to pipes under sinks)?
We don’t have this situation occur in Florida but we do every winter in Georgia.
Make sure tenants are aware of freezing weather and put notes on doors with instructions to keep heat on, drip water and keep kitchen base cabinet and vanity cabinet door open.
I also go through those instructions with tenants upon move in.
I want them to understand that dripping the water doesn’t mean turning it on full force.
In my opinion, if tenants should have known of potential for freezing pipes and how to handle this situation and chose not to do so or did so inadequately, then they should bear the cost of repair.
Here are some related posts that might help:
Landlord Hank: What Is Your No. 1 Maintenance Request From Tenants?
“I started in real estate as a child watching my father take care of our family rentals- maintenance, tenant relations, etc , in small town Ohio. As I grew, I was occasionally Dad’s assistant. In the mid-90s I decided to get into the rental business on my own, as a sideline. In 2001, I retired from my profession and only managed my own investments, for the next 10 years. Six years ago, my sister, working as a rental agent/property manager in Sarasota, Florida convinced me to try the Florida lifestyle. I gave it a try and never looked back. A few years ago we started our own real estate brokerage. We focus on property management and leasing. I continue to manage my real estate portfolio here in Florida and Atlanta. “ Visit Hank’s website here.
Once again Zillow has expanded their home buying/selling program in several more U.S. markets in 2019. According to HousingWire, Zillow will be soon be buying & selling homes in Miami, Minneapolis-St.Paul, Nashville, Orlando, Portland, Dallas, Raleigh (NC), Houston, and Riverside (CA). As we have previously posted, Zillow’s Offers Program pays cash to buy houses from qualified sellers. After the sale is complete (the seller gets to choose a closing date) the home will then be relisted. The program is already in operation in Phoenix, Las Vegas, Atlanta, Denver and Charlotte, South Carolina. Indeed….
“With today’s announcement, we are excited to continue to rapidly scale Zillow Offers throughout the country and we are well on our way to delivering a simple, on demand real estate experience to consumers in at least 14 markets this year,” said Zillow President, Jeremy Wacksman.
We’ve all heard the stories and the jokes about today’s young people (millennials, in particular) still living at home. The folks over at VisualCapitalist recently put together an interactive map illustrating in which states these youngsters are still likely to be living at home. They point out that an estimated 34.5% of young adults (ages 18-34 years old) in the U.S live at home – one of the highest percentages in recent memory.
Here are the five states with the highest proportion of young adults living at home:
| Rank | State | Population (Young Adults) | % Living at Home |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | New Jersey | 1.9 million | 47.3% |
| #2 | Connecticut | 0.7 million | 42.0% |
| #3 | New York | 4.5 million | 40.5% |
| #4 | Florida | 4.3 million | 40.0% |
| #5 | California | 9.4 million | 39.3% |
Click here to read the full story on Visual capitalilst.com.
According to ATTOM Data’s Year-End 2018 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report, foreclosure filings have reached their lowest level since 2005. In 2018, there were 624,753 foreclosure filings (0.47% of all U.S. housing units), which was down 8% from 2007 and 78% from its peak in 2010. In addition they point out that bank repossessions decreased 78% since their peak in 2010 and foreclosure starts were at new record low nationwide. ATTOM’s year-end foreclosure report provides a unique count of properties with a foreclosure filing during the year based on publicly recorded and published foreclosure filings collected in more than 2,500 counties nationwide, with address-level data on more than 23 million foreclosure filings.
“Plummeting foreclosure completions combined with consistently falling foreclosure timelines in 2018 provide evidence that most of the distress from the last housing crisis has now been cleaned up,” said Todd Teta, Chief Product Officer.
Click here to read the full report on ATTOMdata.com.
As a recent post on LendingTree points out, while the retirement stage of life is something most Americans plan for, many just aren’t financially prepared. In fact, one common obstacle to a sound retirement is simply debt. To that end, LendingTree calculated the median non-mortgage debt balances for retirement-aged people in the 50 largest U.S. metros, and then calculated the average distribution of that debt. Among their findings were that the average of median debt for retirement-age borrowers was $20,643 and the average credit score was 701. Indeed…
“Debt is even more burdensome when it’s carried over into retirement. Paying for the usual ongoing expenses on a fixed income can be a stretch, and adding debt payments on top of that can push retirees’ budgets to the breaking point.”
Click here to read the full story at LendingTree.com
The American Bankers Association recently released their top 10 real estate finance policy issues to watch in 2019. Briefly, they are:
“The real estate finance business has been steering through continuous change for a full decade. The 2008 housing meltdown precipitated a set of policy changes that sparked legal, procedural and structural transformations throughout the market. Even commercial real estate lending, largely immune from heavy regulatory scrutiny, is being affected. As we look towards the coming year, we see continued movement and even more reforms…”
Click here to read the full story at the Banking Journal.
The IRS recently announced that it was reopening a program that is key to home lending after the mortgage industry said its closure during the partial government shutdown might force lenders to delay or even scrap loan closings. According to the Wall Street Journal (as posted on Realtor.com) The Mortgage Bankers Association and other industry trade groups had complained to the Treasury Department that the program’s closure as part of the shutdown could harm consumers seeking to obtain a loan.
“Though the program closed because it was funded through the normal appropriations process, the administration determined it could fund it instead through the user fees the IRS charges each time it verifies a borrower’s income. Industry officials said the fees are about $2.00 per request….Reviving the program allowed some 400 IRS clerks to return to work, according to an IRS spokesman.”
Click here to read the full story on Realtor.com.
