What I'm Reading Bid Em Up: A new report from real estate technology company Zavvie on iBuying transactions over the first half of 2021 found that offers from iBuyers were on average 104.1 percent of market value. That’s a marked increase from 2020, when iBuyers offers were coming in at...
July 30th – Hitting the Brakes
What I'm Reading Hitting the Brakes: The CDC has reversed course on indoor masking, saying that vaccinated Americans should once again wear masks indoors. The announcement complicates return-to-office plans for many companies at a time the Delta variant is already forcing some of them to push back their start dates....
July 29th -Open Field
What I'm Reading Open Field: Startups in smaller MSAs are facing competition from large Silicon Valley competitors when it comes to hiring employees: Some of the biggest names in tech aren’t just allowing existing workers to relocate out of the Bay Area, they are also starting to hire in places...
July 27th – Mismatch
What I'm Reading Mismatch: Most of the US is simultaneously experiencing a severe housing shortage and an office glut. Conventional wisdom suggests that vacant office buildings could be converted to residential uses. However, the bureaucratic processes are difficult, the conversions are typically too costly and office floorplates don't translate well...
July 26th – Front Row
What I'm Reading Front Row: As boat sales continue to soar and manufacturer backlogs grow, waterfront homes with private docks are becoming even more valuable. In other related news, its a great time to own boat storage facilities and non-seasonal marinas. Wall Street Journal Sweet Spot: NMHC's July Apartment Market...
July 22nd – Turning Japanese
What I'm Reading Turning Japanese: Not that long ago, global overpopulation was a popular fear. That is no longer the case and global birth trends point towards the opposite, especially in the developed world. The long term aging trend will have many implications, not the least of which is deflationary...
July 19th – Micro Marketing
What I'm Reading Micro Marketing: Cities have historically tried to increase job opportunities by trying to attract large companies with tax incentives. In the post COVID remote work world, cities are increasingly focusing their marketing efforts on appealing to individuals who already have a job but are looking for a...
July 7th – No Vacancy
Chart of the Day As a general rule, most large apartment landlords set rent to try and maintain 95% occupancy at their properties. A 5% vacancy factor is typically used for loan sizing, so there is very little upside from a valuation perspective. The prevailing view in the industry is...
June 30th – Spillover
What I'm Reading Pressure Valve: Last year, home prices soared across the US while rents stagnated, thanks to a large amount of vacancy in big cities. Now there are signs of price exhaustion in the for sale market and rent versus own ratios have become extremely skewed. As a result,...
June 28th – Postponed Again
What I'm Reading Kicking the Can: The CDC announced another extension of the housing eviction moratorium. The moratorium, which was scheduled to end June 30th and will now be pushed to the end of July. At least the length of the extensions is getting shorter, I guess. Globe Street Fighting...