More new home construction may finally be coming. Housing permits, a gauge for future construction, climbed 5% in October, reaching the fastest rate of building permit authorizations since 2007, the U.S. Commerce Department reported Tuesday. Broken out, single-family permits increased 3.2% to a rate of 909,000, while multifamily permits rose 8.2% to a rate of 552,000. Permits rose in every region of the country last month and are 14.1% higher tha
It’s good to be a landlord: National rents on single-family homes rose 3% in September, as low rental housing inventories compared to demand continues to push up prices, according to CoreLogic’s Single-Family Rent Index.“Low rental supply coupled with ongoing demand pushed up rents in September,” says Molly Boesel, principal economist at CoreLogic. “Vacancy rates have fallen moderately on the national level over the last quarter—with
A growing number of retirees are bucking the downsizing trend and are opting to upsize instead. They may be motivated to find a larger home to accommodate a live-in parent or visiting family members or because a larger home is simply what they prefer.“People who choose to upsize in retirement often do so when relocating to a more climate-friendly area, such as Florida or Arizona,” Cara Ameer, a real estate professional with Coldwell Bank
Some millennials are feeling trapped in renting because they’re unable to save enough to make the leap into homeownership, according to Apartment List’s “2019 Millennials & Homeownership Report.” The report analyzes the attitudes, expectations, and actions of more than 10,000 millennial renters nationwide.The vast majority of millennials say they want to own a home and view it as a financially superior choice over renting, but ne
The youngest generation of future home buyers appreciates diversity in the neighborhood where they want to live. Nearly half of potential Generation Z home buyers who plan to purchase say they believe living in a racially and ethnically diverse neighborhood represents “a positive force in society,” according to a new survey of 1,300 18-to-24-year-olds conducted by Homes.com. They also say they are interested in being exposed to other cultures
Before purchasing a car, many consumers like to give it a test drive to make sure the vehicle is the right fit for them. Likewise, some house hunters are asking for a “test stay” at a home before signing the sale contract. While that’s not always possible, Tim McMullen, a sales associate with Kinoko in San Francisco’s luxury market, recently offered some tips in a realtor.com® article to accommodate as much of your buyers’ request as p
Some sellers are hoping to hook a buyer by offering a one-year home warranty to cover repair costs for items such as appliances, electricity, or plumbing. The tactic, which is gaining popularity, is meant to give buyers peace of mind that they won't have to shell out cash for pricey improvements after moving into the home. Seventeen percent of sellers have offered a home warranty as an incentive to potential buyers, according to research fro
Customers were slightly less satisfied with mortgage originators in the second quarter, and too much technology may be the culprit, according to the latest J.D. Power 2019 U.S. Primary Mortgage Origination Satisfaction Study. Lenders have been adding self-service technology to increase convenience in the mortgage process while trimming their customer-facing staff. But too much tech may fall short of customers’ expectations for service, the stud
It’s a good time to be a homeowner: The share of equity-rich residential properties zoomed to a total of 14.4 million, shows the 2019 U.S. Home Equity & Underwater Report from ATTOM Data Solutions. Nearly 27% of all properties with a mortgage in the U.S. are now considered “equity rich,” meaning the combined estimated amount of loans secured by those properties was 50% or less of their estimated market value.“There are notable equity
Mortgage rates climbed again this week, and economists say the trend may well continue as the economy sees some improvement. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.75% this week, Freddie Mac reports.“The modest uptick in mortgage rates over the last two months reflects declining recession fears and a more sanguine outlook for the global economy,” says Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. “Due to the improved economic outlook, pu
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