KNOWLEDGE IS POWER

The dollar value of residential properties purchased by international buyers decreased 21.2% YoY. Florida remains the top destination for foreign buyers. Foreign buyers purchased $42 billion worth of U.S. existing homes from April 2023 through March 2024, retreating 21.2% from the prior 12-month period. Read more:

Those along the Pacific & Atlantic coasts are seeing the greatest impacts. The 10 cities with the biggest shortages were Boston, Sacramento, Portland, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose, Seattle, Minneapolis, Los Angeles, & Austin. Austin and Seattle, however, also ranked among the markets that saw the largest increase in housing supply in 2022. Joining those cities in that trend were Orlando, Jacksonville, Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, Raleigh, Nashville, and Phoenix. Read more:

Builder confidence in July was down slightly, but the total inventory remains at a 4.4 months' supply, indicating a need for more home construction. This is the lowest reading since December 2023. "Though inflation is still above the Federal Reserve's target of 2%, it appears to be back on a cooling trend." Read more:

For the first time in state history, the median sale price for FL exceeded that of the national number and has stayed there for several months. However, since the market recovered from 2007-2008 crisis, FL has seen a slow & steady pricing gain that has been reflective of demand and rooted in real incomes. Read more:

Most Gen Zers have concerns about buying a home, with 54% worrying they won't be able to afford it and 48% fearing hidden costs. Sixty percent of Gen Z worry they might never own a home, with nearly all adult Gen Zers (98%) citing significant barriers to homeownership, according to a new survey. Read more:

President called on Congress to pass legislation that would cap rent increases of existing units at 5% and for federal agencies to sustainably repurpose public land and rehabilitate distressed housing. The proposed legislation would require landlords to keep annual rent increases to no more than 5% or lose access to faster depreciation write-offs, beginning this year and extending through 2026. Read more:

Experts say 2024 may be an opportunity for the commercial housing market to get back on solid footing by embracing shifting preferences and emerging trends. The market is continuing to take shape and redefine itself after several years of new challenges. Read more:

Despite predictions housing prices would come down, values keep rising in 2024. The reason? The tight inventory. Much to the chagrin of would-be homebuyers, property prices just keep rising. It seems nothing — not even the highest mortgage rates in nearly 23 years — can stop the continued climb of home prices. Read more:

Freddie Mac’s chief economist said rates will continue to go down as inflation decelerates. Mortgage rates are at the lowest level since May. The cost of financing a home has been mostly easing in the weeks since the average rate on a 30-year mortgage hit 7.79%, the highest level since late 2000. Read more:

CoreLogic Case-Shiller found U.S. home prices are up 45% since March 2020, the biggest gains since December 2022. CoreLogic forecasts home prices will rise by an average of 3% this year. A closely watched housing market barometer shows U.S. home prices in November posted their biggest annual gain in more than a year. Read more:

Floridians anticipate a positive economic outcome in the coming year, bolstered by a strong market and low unemployment, a University of Florida survey found. Consumer sentiment among Floridians started the year at the highest level over the last two years, highlighting residents’ positive outlook about the future of the economy and personal finances. Read more:

NAR is projecting a 13% increase in existing-home sales in 2024 (from 2023) to 4.62 million and a 15.8% increase in 2025 (from 2024) to 5.35 million and said interest rates will be cut four times. PHSI – a forward-looking indicator of home sales based on contract signings – increased to 77.3 in December. Read more:

From April 2022 through March 2023, foreign buyers purchased $53.3 billion worth of U.S. existing homes – 9.6% less than the previous 12-month period, according to the National Association of Realtors® (NAR). They bought 84,600 properties, down 14.2% year-to-year and the fewest number of purchases since 2009, when NAR began tracking international-buyer data. Read more:

What’s happening today that will influence the commercial RE market tomorrow? The rise of e-commerce, evolving work models, repurposing, new technology and more. It’s important for investors and real estate professionals to stay abreast of these fast-changing and emergent trends in order to navigate the evolving landscape and leverage emerging opportunities for success in the years to come. Read more:

“The recovery has not taken place, but the housing recession is over,” says NAR’s chief economist, after the first pending-sales increase in three months. Pending home sales registered a modest increase of 0.3% in June mo-to-mo (first increase since Feb) according to the NAR. The South and West posted monthly losses, while sales in the Northeast and Midwest grew. All four U.S. regions saw year-over-year transaction declines. Read more:

Nationally it’s 13%, but in Fort Lauderdale it’s 28% – the highest in the U.S. In Miami, a first-time buyer needs to earn 25% more than they did a year ago. It’s even worse in many Florida metros, with the strongest demand for a higher income occurring in Broward County. Read more:

Checkr – an employee background-check firm – analyzed data to pinpoint the growth metros that would be attractive to employer relocations and job-seeking movers. Boomtowns, in short, are U.S. cities and metro areas attracting the most people – new business as well as movers looking for better jobs – that other areas of the country. Read more:

In 2Q 2023, FL remained a top go-to state, with the lion’s share relocating from New York, but Chicago provided more buyers for Cape Coral, No. 7 on the list. A record one-in-four national homebuyers (25.5%) searched for homes in metros outside their current state in the in the second quarter, up from 23% one year earlier, according to a report from Redfin. Before the pandemic, it was 19%. Read more:

Buyers haggle to keep costs down – but home selling price isn’t most important. For bigger savings, buyers should compare mortgages and negotiate better terms. Read more:

The U.S. could default on its debt by June 1 if politicians don’t reach an agreement by then – but even a last minute deal can temporarily upend financial markets. Read more:

As out-of-state and international buyers focused on Miami and other cities, more residents of those cities headed to Florida's smaller and more affordable towns. Read more:

Special assessments appear in various places of the Florida Realtors/Florida Bar contract, but Paragraph 3(c) on the Condo Rider has confused more than a few members. Read more:

Remote workers who may live anywhere in the U.S. could choose a 374-square-foot San Francisco studio or a 5,109-square-foot single-family home in Detroit. Read more:

Number of buyers looking within their metro dropped 15.6% in 1Q, but the number looking elsewhere fell only 4.2%. FL has 5 of top 10 want-to-move-to metros. Read more:

Using national and local data, a company that helps parents connect with high schools and colleges named Tampa and Orlando areas to its top 25 “best places to live.” Read more:

Jan. prices rose 3.8% compared to 5.6% in Dec., in part due to up-and-down mortgage rates. But Miami ranked No. 1 with a 13.8% jump, with Tampa No. 2 at 10.5%. January 2023 finds that home prices continue to go up, but the rate of those increases continues to slow. Read more:

In February, the number of buyers searching listings outside their state dropped 3.6% year-to-year – but those looking locally fell 14.4%. 5 FL metros are top go-to spots. Read more:

NAR study: In 2022, boomers made up 39% of buyers (29% in 2021) while millennials made up only 28% (43% in 2021). The main reason? Boomers had more money. Read more:

Pending sales – homes under contract but not yet sold – rose 0.8% month-to-month in Feb. with only the Western region seeing a decline. Read more:

When it comes to staging a listing, sellers’ agents are divided over the benefits. NAR’s 2023 staging report found only 1 in 5 agents said it increased a home’s value. Read more: