News

Housing Starts & Permits Drop Dramatically Due to Pandemic The U.S. government is reporting that privately‐owned housing starts in April were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 891k, which is 30.2% below March’s revised number.  April’s rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 234k.  Privately‐owned housing units authorized by building […]

AAA Declines to Issue Memorial Day Travel Forecast – 1st time in 20 years For the past several years we’ve posted the annual AAA Memorial Day Travel forecast – the unofficial start of summer!  However, under the current circumstances, and for the first time in 20 years, AAA will not be issuing a travel forecast

Young are joining the rich fleeing America’s big cities for the suburbs While the wealthy have settled into their second homes, many young people are leaving expensive shoe-box apartments to shelter with their parents in the suburbs. | realestate.boston.com The post Young are joining the rich fleeing America’s big cities for the suburbs appeared first

Foreclosure Activity Hits Historic Lows According to ATTOM Data, there were 4,148 U.S. properties with foreclosure filings in April, down 70% from March and down 75% from one year ago.  That equates to one in every 9,639 properties receiving a foreclosure filing during April.  ATTOM says this isn’t surprising since the federal government imposed a

US long-term mortgage rates ease (May 21) A year ago, the rate stood at 4.06%. Read more on the real estate market at realestate.boston.com. The post US long-term mortgage rates ease (May 21) appeared first on Boston.com Real Estate.

Most Buyers Want a Home Office With the Coronavirus pandemic forcing people to work from home (if they’re able) the number-crunchers over at the NAHB’s Eye on Housing reexamined some data. They took another look at the 2018 NAHB’s consumer preference study (the most recent available), What Home Buyers Really Want and discovered that 65%

Homeowners who delayed their mortgage payments won’t be shut out of the market after all Borrowers will be able to obtain new loans three months after their forbearance period ends. The post Homeowners who delayed their mortgage payments won’t be shut out of the market after all appeared first on Boston.com Real Estate.

Can the coronavirus spread through a building’s HVAC or plumbing systems? ‘There is concerning evidence that there may be some hybrid form of transmission — not just droplets, but potentially airborne or aerosol transmission .’ The post Can the coronavirus spread through a building’s HVAC or plumbing systems? appeared first on Boston.com Real Estate.

Yardi Says Impact of Pandemic on Apartments Beginning to Emerge According to the latest Yardi Matrix, the average U.S. rent in April was $ 1,465 (down $ 8).  That being said, Yardi says rents increased 1.6% on a year-over-year basis, however they point out that it marks the biggest one-month decline in their dataset, including

Keep Your Mobile Phone Clean, Too! In today’s business environment the mobile phone has not only become an essential tool, but is nearly ubiquitous among our society.  Throw in the current Coronavirus pandemic that the world is experiencing and you realize that you’re potentially carrying around a little germ-trap.  A while back we posted about