 The Sunshine State: Congratulations to Florida’s real estate investors! The recently passed HB 1417 (Florida Legislature) provides clear, thoughtful statewide controls on the housing provider-renter relationship. Political wannabes are wringing their hands about their loss of control over local housing, but the reality is that the massive patchwork of laws, regulations, and, in some cases, outright bans, has a deleterious effect on housing for all of Florida. The legislature and governor had the good sense to recognize that this is one area where too many cooks really do ruin the housing soup! Read more about it by clicking here. Take what: The Pacific Legal Foundation is active on the Atlantic coast! With the passage of a Rhode Island Law that essentially stripped beachfront property from the privacy of ownership and converted it to public space, the legislature set itself up for a “takings” lawsuit—especially when the owners of the private-public property are still on the property tax hook for the land! Read more about it by clicking here.  Seller-Finance Update: In conjunction with the Seller Finance Coalition, HR 3464, the Affordable Homeownership Access Act, has been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives. There is an additional effort to garner a sponsor or two in the U.S. Senate, calling on all Ohio and Alabama Investors to reach out to their senators; they are key to moving this bill in both the House AND the Senate. Please go to the Advocacy section of the National REIA’ website for an easy way to reach out through our VoterVoice program! Click here to take action!  Sales Tax Holidays: The back-to-school sales and sales tax holidays are hitting local communities and the pockets of many Americans. School starts have a slowing impact on housing sales, and that will result in additional headlines about the slowing of single-family home sales. We are looking beyond the existing housing market toward new construction for a better pulse of how the market is doing. With housing costs as the dominant aspect of inflation, the Fed believes they need to further slow housing cost increases, while at the same time preparing for political pressure to stimulate the economy next year due to Presidential Election (it happens every cycle!). Click here to read more about this summer’s sales tax holidays. Harvard’s State of the Nation’s Housing report for 2023 echoes the familiar demographic concerns we have raised: with the majority of Millennial housing formations already completed, the remaining demand cannot cover the increased cost, so that until there is a reduction in pricing, a substantial part of the market has been priced out. With slowing new home construction as well, the slowing population growth may even out with the shortage of housing over the next couple years, especially with flatter housing costs expected due to higher interest rates. Click here to read more about the report.  When a lawyer speaks: While you may fill in your own punchline, there is often more than a bit of good advice in their words. This is especially true when the National REIA General Counsel remarks on the eviction process! Be sure to check out Jeff Watson’s pointed remarks on the necessity of evidentiary continuity for things like text strings with tenants. There are some specific Do’s and Don’ts. Click here to read Watson’s article.  One man’s junk is another man’s treasure: right up until the Government bans it! As a follow-up to the White House’s Blueprint for Renters’ Rights and in effort to increase transparency, we are urging a ban on all fees that are not Rent. Calling everything else a junk fee. Their list of “junk fees” includes application fees. So far, 7 states have begun further limiting housing providers business options or demanding transparency in the form of specific lists of fees on the first page of a lease. Watch for communities to follow on this trend as election season approaches. Click here to read more about this issue. Oh, those politicians: If politicians really wanted transparency, they would wear their sponsor’s name on their outfits like race cars do—at least we, The people, would then really know to whom they are beholden! Stay up to date: Stay up to date with current industry news and updates by visiting RealEstateInvestingToday.com. Likewise, visit NationalREIA.org/advocacy to stay up-to-date with current legislation and governmental actions. |
REIASense – National REIA Update on Government Affairs
