Cheap energy prices and lifestyle are once again leading to a move back to ‘burbs’ in America. Front and back yards are back in style for some, along with landscaping, vegetable gardens and trees. There are tens-of-thousands of Millennials in hot pursuit. As a result, demand is robust in many of the U.S. suburban housing …Read more
An estimated 40 million Americans move at least once each year, making up roughly 14 percent of the U.S. population. Trends in moving have been towards warmer climates, more affordable destinations and to where there are jobs. Many trends have been ongoing for 50 years or more. In the last quarter of 2017, San Francisco …Read more
Jobs are everything to an economy. Period. My favorite economic axiom! The ultimate demand for real estate is driven by people with money in their pockets – hence the focus on jobs. The demand for almost all real estate is local in nature (forgoing natural resources and geographic factors). Where robust job growth is found, …Read more
Back in the 1960s and 1970s there was magic in the word MILLION. Median home prices were less than $30,000. When I graduated with a Master’s degree in 1978 there were just 450,000 Millionaires in the country. There are almost 11 million today. Things change. So does the impact of some words. Many people now …Read more
There are only two things that are inevitable – death and taxes. Good news is this blog is about the latter of the two. Just as there are a number of things that can impact health, there are also multiple taxes that cannot be avoided. While property taxes are the primary revenue source for state …Read more
There was much debate and rhetoric regarding the potential impact on higher-valued homes arising from passage of the Tax Cut and Jobs Creation Act of 2017. The thought was that by cutting the allowable interest deduction from $1 million of total loans on the primary and secondary home(s) to $750,000, along with limiting a total …Read more
As we turn our air conditioners colder this pre-fourth of July weekend due to the heat wave covering most of the country, the cost of electricity comes front and center. According to the U.S. Energy Information Agency (EIA), air conditioning is the number one user of electricity in the average U.S. home, accounting for 15 …Read more
My number one Axiom is: Jobs are everything to the economy – period. This includes the demand for real estate. Axioms are statements that are so evident they are accepted as the truth. Where job growth is the greatest directly correlates to strong demand for real estate. The first table shows the Top-10 job gainers …Read more
Millennials have made up the top-homebuyer demographic since 2016 and are likely to the primary demand segment for housing for decades to come. With a current force of 71 million in the population cohort, where Millennials end up moving and working may change the destiny of cities and states across the U.S. – both those …Read more
Affordability is the new battle cry across the U.S. as home prices continue to escalate at a rate much greater than the corresponding growth in incomes. This particular affordability issue is being driven by demand simply outstripping supply. From a construction perspective, the U.S. continues to under-build housing. In the 12-months ending April 2018, a …Read more