What I'm Reading SALT in the Wound: The Supreme Court rejected a challenge to the SALT deduction cap from the 2017 Trump tax bill. Looks like the $10k cap is here to stay, at least until it sunsets in 2025. Commercial Observer Streamline: A new California bill - AB2234 -...
January 25th – Up and To The Right
What I'm Reading Up And To The Right: Average monthly listed rents in the US increased 14.1% year over year, according to a report issued by real estate brokerage firm Redfin. Meanwhile, the national monthly mortgage payment for homebuyers climbed 21.6% year over year, also the biggest increase in Redfin’s...
January 24th – On the Clock
What I'm Reading On the Clock: The 2017 tax law contains a provision allowing for bonus depreciation on eligible assets, allowing investors who qualify as a real estate professional to shelter income, even in the absence of a 1031 exchange. A sunset provision was built into the law, meaning that...
January 10th – Misdirection
One Big Thing The following is not tax advice. There are several things that we can say definitively about disgraced WeWork co-founder Adam Neuman. Here are a few: He is a massive self promoter He is generally full of shit. Like it or not, he is one of the great...
November 9th – Outside Set
What I'm Reading Outside Set: With travel restrictions set to be lifted on 33 countries, brokers in cities popular with wealthy foreign investors are reporting a substantial uptick in requests for showings. This is looking like a big shot in the arm for the luxury segment in coastal gateway cities....
September 29th – Shots Fired
What I'm Reading Shots Fired: The SEC is targeting a crowdfunding portal in its first enforcement action in the space. Regulators sued the operator of a funding portal, TruCrowd Inc., for allegedly failing to heed red flags despite allegedly being told that one of the key players had a criminal...
September 17th – Locals Only
What I'm Reading Locals Only: The greater Phoenix area has record demand for new rental housing. However, cities are pushing back, leading to higher prices. AZ Big Media Looks like California has exported its shitty land use politics as more Golden State residents move to the desert. Cooling: August's CPI...
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...
May 25th – Sending a Message
What I'm Reading Backlash: Ireland is trying to keep institutional investor firms from buying up its housing stock by imposing a 10% tax on a the purchase of 10 or more homes. The tax will apply to bulk purchases and cumulative acquisitions of 10 or more homes a year but...
May 19th – Center of Gravity
What I'm Reading Center of Gravity: While the Biden tax plan roiled markets over the past few weeks, corporate executives and lobbyists and lobbyists are confident that centrist Democrats in both the Senate and House will ultimately kill almost all of the proposed increases. Politico Burn Out: Mortgage demand has...