Real estate investing may still feel out of reach to many consumers, but a new trend growing from startups is fostering “micro-investing” to help a new wave of investors jump in—sometimes for as little as $5.“The best portfolios are diversified, and real estate performs very uniquely, in a way that is uncorrelated to the stock market and bonds … We want to offer the same asset at a lower price point,” Janine Yorio, founder and CEO of
Economic growth helped to accelerate single-family rental prices in 2019, and that momentum is expected to continue for the rental market well into 2020, according to CoreLogic’s Principal Economist Molly Boesel.Demand remains strong as rental vacancies reached a record low in the fourth quarter of 2019, CoreLogic reports in its latest Single-Family Rent Index. U.S. single-family rent prices rose 2.9% year-over-year in December 2019.“Strong e
The number of properties for sale has hit a record low, and that could mean a tougher house hunt ahead for home buyers this spring. The housing shortage is hitting markets across the country, making places like Buffalo and Rochester, N.Y., Columbus, Ohio, and Salt Lake City feel more like the competitive housing markets and tech hubs of San Francisco, Silicon Valley, and Seattle, realtor.com® reports.Realtor.com® researchers analyzed housing ma
The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.47% this week, remaining an alluring incentive for buyers who want to lock in some of the lowest borrowing rates in years.“With mortgage rates hovering near a five-decade low, refinance application activity is once again surging, rising to the highest level in seven years,” says Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. “This surge, coupled with strong purchase activity, means that total mortgag
Is the declining number of marriages contributing to fewer first-time home buyers? In the 1980s, the number of married couples in the ranks of first-time buyers peaked at 75%. Flash forward to today, when only 53% of first-time buyers are married couples, according to data from the National Association of REALTORS®.So who are the other buyers making up the housing market today? The share of unmarried couples purchasing their first home is now ma
Seventy-one percent of contracts in December were settled on time, but 25% faced a delay, according to the latest REALTORS® Confidence Index. The index is based on a survey of more than 8,000 real estate respondents. Four percent of contracts in December were canceled altogether.The top issues REALTORS® encountered that led to contract delays were:Issues related to obtaining financing: 37%Appraisal issues: 19%Home inspection/environmental issue
After a real estate groups’ lawsuit, a New York judge has granted a temporary restraining order to prevent new rules taking effect that banned brokers from receiving fees on rentals in the state. The short-term reprieve was in response to the Real Estate Board of New York, the New York Association of REALTORS®, and other brokerages suing the Department of State over its broker ban fee ruling that they called “unlawful”and having
As interest rates move lower, borrowers can unlock some serious savings by gathering more than one quote from a mortgage lender. It may be worth the extra time to gather up to three quotes from mortgage lenders. The average borrower could save $44,500 over the life of their loan by comparison shopping for a mortgage, a new study by LendingTree finds.In some metro areas, particularly among the nation’s priciest areas, the savings could be even g
Low mortgage rates continue to push borrowing costs lower this year, but not every consumer is able to qualify. About a quarter of mortgage refinance applications are getting denied, according to a study from LendingTree of more than 10 million mortgage applications.The top four reasons why applications were denied were debt-to-income ratio, credit history, incomplete application, and insufficient collateral.Debt-to-income ratios c
One in four homes with a mortgage in the U.S. were considered equity rich in the fourth quarter of 2019, according to newly released data from ATTOM Data Solutions, a real estate data firm. That means the loans on those properties are 50% or less of the home’s estimated market value.The Northeast and West saw the highest amounts of equity among homeowners. California led, with 42.8% of its homeowners considered equity rich, followed by Ver
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