Since it is the weekend and real estate is BOOMING around the country....here is a fun little article on the conditions of the real estate markets. 15 'Bizarre' Facts And Figures About The US Housing Market, According To The CEO Of Redfin https://digg.com/2021/us-housing-market-statistics-redfin-ceo The US housing market is booming, home prices are soaring and demand is off the charts. To illustrate the insanity of the current moment, Redfin CEO Glenn Kelman shared 15 insights into the US real estate market on Twitter, writing, "It has been hard to convey, through anecdotes or data, how bizarre the US housing market has become. 1 of 15: It has been hard to convey, through anecdotes or data, how bizarre the U.S. housing market has become. For example, a Bethesda, Maryland homebuyer working with @Redfin included in her written offer a pledge to name her first-born child after the seller. She lost. 2 of 15: There are now more Realtors than listings. 3 of 15: Inventory is down 37% year over year to a record low. The typical home sells in 17 days, a record low. Home prices are up a record amount, 24% year over year, to a record high. And still homes sell on average for 1.7% higher than the asking price, another record. 4 of 15: But in two of America’s largest cities, inventory has increased, in New York by 28%, in San Francisco by 77%. San Francisco hasn’t had an inventory increase this large since 2008. And still in both markets, prices are increasing. 5 of 15: In 2020, new-construction permits were *down* 13% in DC and New York, 40% in LA, 48% in Chicago, 50% in Seattle, 79% in San Francisco. Permits were *up* 25% in Miami, 56% in Vegas, 96% in Greenville, 122% in Detroit, 246% in Knoxville. 6 of 15: Lumber prices are up 300%. 7 of 15: In Redfin’s annual survey of nearly 2,000 homebuyers, 63% reported having bid on a home they hadn’t seen in person. 8 of 15: In an April survey of 600 http://Redfin.com users who had relocated in the past year, about two thirds of the people who moved got a house the same size or bigger, but about the same proportion, two thirds, spent the same or *less* on housing. 9 of 15: Even though most of the people who moved got a bigger home, 78% reported having the same or more disposable income after their move. Idaho home prices could triple and still seem affordable to a Californian. 10 of 15: For low-tax states, 4 people move in for every 1 who leaves. For Texas, this ratio is 5:1; for Florida, 7:1. Cites & states have no leverage to raise taxes, after many promised new money for social justice; the federal government will have to fund long-term investments. 11 of 15: This migration to lower-cost areas may lead to lower workforce participation. For many families @Redfin has relocated, the money saved on housing costs lets one parent stop working. A wave of Redfin customers are retiring early. 12 of 15: Lenders are calling employers to confirm that the homebuyer will have permission to work remotely when the pandemic ends. Rates are lower for loans on primary residences, and the lender also wants to make sure the borrower actually plans to work after getting the loan. 13 of 15: The average housing budget for out-of-towners moving to Nashville was $720K, ~50% higher than locals’ $485K budget. It used to be coastal elites who worried that every adult in the family had to win a career lottery, just to afford a home. Now that feeling may spread. 14 of 15: it’s not just income that’s k-shaped, but mobility. 90% of people earning $100,000+ per year expect to be able to work virtually, compared to 10% of those earning $40,000 or less per year. The folks who need low-cost housing the most have the least flexibility to move. 15 of 15: an investor recently said, with an ancient touch of awe but also greed, that one source of America’s miraculous economic recovery was the bounty of “the land itself.” We have more room to grow than we ever imagined. We just have to make sure that benefits everyone."" MY COMMENT We are in the middle of one CRAZY real estate market. For some areas the BOOM might be just about over. For other hot areas like mine....I dont see any end in sight due to the demographics of the area and desirability of the area for business. I do get the FEELING that the MANIA is already starting to wear thin in many parts of the country. It is amazing how quickly real estate markets can COLLAPSE. Just as quickly as they can take off.....it is a very WEIRD PSYCHOLOGICAL event.
This is an interesting point Ive been wondering about. Sure, housing is up nicely if you are a home owner, but when you sell, where do you go? Moving further and further away to get cheaper/smaller housing at the cost of longer commutes? As the next point states, getting that money from the house and retiring seems to be the ticket!
Yes Stock.Jock-e. Many people......I am sure.....are not listing homes because they dont know where they would go......or......if they can even find a home to move to. I know one person that did sell his home in the city and move out further and was able to get a home free and clear. It is a NICE problem to have if you already own a home in a HOT area. Not so NICE for those trying to buy for the first time or move. I just noticed about 30 minutes ago that the house.......four houses down from me......is now "under contract" at $1.45MILLION. It is 350 SQ FT smaller than us and very similar finishes....same builder. We paid $800K in May of 2019.....and at that time we considered that this house was worth about $728K. We INTENTIONALLY overpaid to get this particular lot and floor plan. We bought while the house was "coming soon". It NOW looks like we made the right move.....accidentally. We knew the market would catch up with what we paid......but......expected it would take about two years to get up to $800K. We never imagined that the house would be worth between $1.3MILLION and $1.45MILLION in just.....TWO YEARS......a gain of $500,000 to $650,000. We thought the market was CRAZY when a house with our EXACT floor plan sold for $1.3MILLION.....now the smaller one at $1.45MILLION........just a few months after the $1.3MILLLION house.......simply INSANE. We do LOVE it and will TAKE IT. It is a NICE feeling and a good financial cushion to see this home appreciate so much so quickly. Since we own FREE and CLEAR....it gives us another BIG financial cushion in the event of some unexpected financial disaster.....a good feeling.
Is there anyone on here OR lurking that is trying to buy right now? OR that just bought? If so....what are your thoughts and experiences? Feelings? I know that Zukodany just bought a month or two ago. I imagine that his property is already appreciated.....perhaps even significantly in just a few months.
Like the BOOM in the real estate markets......we have seen a BOOM and much NEW wealth in the stock markets. It can be disconcerting to many to have this...."problem". Suddenly wealthy from markets, some millennials are stressed After Nasdaq and bitcoin rallies, young investors weigh options for what to do with their money https://www.foxbusiness.com/money/suddenly-wealthy-markets-millennials-stressed (BOLD is my opinion OR what I consider important content) "Soaring assets and stocks in the past year have in some cases handed midlevel workers huge windfalls. Those who have benefited from the market surge typically fall into one of three categories, said Sahil Vakil, founder of personal-finance tech company MYRA: They were given company shares as compensation and those same shares recently boomed; they caught last year's retail investing frenzy and rode the market to new highs; or they invested early on in cryptocurrency, to great success. The Nasdaq Composite rose nearly 47% over the past 12 months, and even after a recent pullback, a crypto investor who put $10,000 in bitcoin at the end of 2019 could have netted more than $50,000 in gains after bitcoin's 2020-21 surge. In the past year, more than half of Mr. Vakil's clients have experienced a market windfall. On the East Coast, Mr. Vakil says his clients typically work in the finance and consulting sectors; on the West Coast, most are working in the tech industry. The average household he works with holds $250,000 in assets and falls between the ages of 25 and 45. Many of these workers may have struggled with stagnating wages and huge student loan debts earlier in their careers. Some worry they'll mismanage this boon and forever ruin their chance at financial stability. "These individuals completely feel and understand and recognize the pain of the last year, but now they're being given an opportunity to come out of that," Mr. Vakil said. "They're saying, 'This is my one chance.' They're taking it with both hands. They don't want to mess it up." Here are some tips to manage a sudden windfall. First, put long-term goals in focus Arun Gupta, a 36-year-old tech executive based in New York City, began investing in cryptocurrency, mostly bitcoin and recently ethereum, in late 2019. By the end of 2020, that original investment more than quintupled. "I want to have enough money where if my family wants to splurge on a vacation, there isn't anything holding us back," he said. "I don't want [student debt] to be an issue for my kids or for anyone in my family." He chats about his crypto investments in a group message with other friends interested in bitcoin. To shore up his funds for those future goals, Mr. Gupta is planning to hold on to his bitcoin investments in hope they continue to grow. "I just know having money sitting in a bank account -- that's not my nature," he said. "I like to take risks with my money." Deal with the feelings A sudden market windfall in these times can lead to decision paralysis, said Meg Bartelt, certified financial planner and founder of Flow Financial Planning. She has seen clients wrestle with feelings of elation, fear, guilt and stress. "From a mathematical perspective, they can now easily buy a home for $2 million, but psychologically, that's unsettling," she said. "They can't wrap their heads around it." Ms. Bartelt's first plan of action: Don't buy the new vacation home or launch the new business, yet. "Good financial decisions are rarely made in the middle of an emotional maelstrom," she said. "The piece of advice I find myself giving over and over again is actually a best practice in the world of what's called 'sudden money': Don't do anything that's not necessary. I think it's very worthwhile to not do anything big or irrevocable until your emotions have settled down around this huge wealth event." Set aside money for taxes immediately Mr. Vakil said all his clients bring one big question: Will I be in trouble come tax time? "The first concern all these people have, unanimously, is not 'What do I do with this money?'" he said. "It's 'What do I do with my taxes?'" For clients who have only recently begun trading, he said, coping with capital-gains taxes may be a new and confusing experience. For example, the profits on assets held a year or less are taxed at much higher rates than the profits on assets held longer than a year. Those trading cryptocurrency must keep in mind that a sale or exchange from one cryptocurrency to another will count as a taxable event (this can also include events known as forks and airdrops in the crypto world). Keeping careful records of all transactions can help at tax time, as current law doesn't yet mandate brokers to report crypto sales. To help clients minimize their coming tax bills, Mr. Vakil often recommends tax-loss harvesting, which means selling losers strategically to reap losses that can offset the taxable profits from winners. For crypto investors, this may be difficult to untangle if they haven't kept records on their own. While brokerage firms must keep records about stock trades and send the information to the Internal Revenue Service, crypto exchanges don't have to do this under current law. Mr. Vakil also advises his clients who trade frequently that they may need to pay estimated taxes quarterly to Uncle Sam to avoid penalties at tax-filing time. Sarah Behr, a financial planner and founder of Simplify Financial in San Francisco, often recommends moving money for taxes at the time of a sale into a separate account so it isn't in danger of being spent or mismanaged. Large taxable gains are also an opportunity for investors who are charitably minded, says Ms. Behr. Under current law, donors who make gifts of appreciated assets to charities often don't owe capital-gains tax on the appreciation. Instead, they get a charitable deduction for the asset's full market value. "That allows you to get some of this stock off your plate that maybe allows you to have high gains," said Ms. Behr. "And then you're rewarding that charity with a larger gift than you would if you just gave cash." Next, plan for your immediate needs For those unsure about what step to take next, Mr. Vakil recommends handling immediate concerns to buy yourself some more time. That could be paying off your mortgage or car, or wiping out any other debts. With these monthly bills out of the way, the client has more brain space to consider what they want to do with this new, slightly smaller, pile of money. One of the other initial steps on Ms. Behr's list for clients: diversify their portfolios. Because many of these clients will have benefited from a company liquidity event, their portfolios may be heavily weighted toward one stock, which can be risky. "Every time someone has a windfall, there should be a plan," she said. "I'm trying to move them to action." Now vs. later Mr. Vakil and Ms. Behr say most of their clients don't kick up their heels and sail off on a yacht. "I don't have clients who are like 'I'm going to go off and buy a Lamborghini' or 'I'm going to Tahiti,' although I'm sure those people are out there," Ms. Behr said. "I get people asking "How do I live now? Do I just live off my salary like I was before?' And I say, 'Look, the sky's the limit." Planning how your sudden windfall could open a new chapter may feel intimidating to some, but to others, it is exciting. Lalit Kalani, a 37-year-old trader now based in Mumbai, India, hasn't made a million yet, but he says he's closing in. He hopes the money he has made could become seed money for a new business or fund an early retirement. "There were times last year I thought, 'Why am I working? I should just be trading,'" Mr. Kalani said. "I have a runway now." Seek advice in the right places Seeking advice from family or friends on what to do immediately can also lead to complicated feelings of competition and decision fatigue, said Ms. Behr. "A lot of them get overwhelmed," she said. "Every one of these companies going public has some Slack channel talking personal finance, and it can get heated." Ms. Behr's clients say the most common concerns in these Slack groups are tax-related ("Will I need to completely overhaul how I file?") and future-obsessed ("Where should I put this money until I determine how I'll manage it going forward?"). Going from "I don't feel financially stable" to "I finally have options" can feel shocking or even intimidating, Ms. Behr said. Rather than relying on virtual water-cooler tips, she urges making a realistic financial plan and seeking the help of advisers they feel will understand their values."" MY COMMENT DEALING with and INVESTING large sums of money is a LEARNED BEHAVIOR. It takes time and experience to get comfortable dealing with large sums. Some people NEVER get used to it. I was lucky....I dealt with large sums of money while in business......so I had a lot of experience from a very early age. It is also.....for many people....SURPRISINGLY......a very emotional and psychological experience. For some people it creates a sort of emotional paralysis. SOME can not stand the stress or the risk that they might screw up or lose the money. BUT....for most....over time you will get used to it and will be able to function as realistic and rational investors.
I shared this when I first posted on this forum but I bought about 13 months ago and I was tempted to push it off because of COVID because I didn’t know what the RE market was going to do. However, we went ahead and pushed forward with it against my better judgement at the time. Per Zillow, in that one year time it’s up 13%. The exact opposite of what I thought would happen is what happened. Cue market timing message.
Just closed on a place last week. You dont want to hear my thoughts and feelings on this matter It was a complete nightmare getting a place. I moved from NC to the Vancouver area, which is one of the most expensive places in the world. Buyers are coming in with cash offers, as is, no inspection needed, what ever it takes to just get the property. Its a terrible market for buyers. In the two months its taken us to sign, finalize financing and close, which we did on Thursday, the value of the property increased +$100,000 based of what the neighbor just sold for. To those who are currently trying to buy, may God have mercy on your soul!
Vancouver Washington? I assume not Canada. I know that Vancouver/Portland area well. Definitely one of the INSANE real estate markets over recent years and especially NOW. Vancouver, Canada....even worse for buyers. Glad you were able to get something. NICE to have $100,000.....INSTANT equity over and above what you paid. BUT....I can only imagine the stress of buying in that area in this market. CONGRATULATIONS on the new home!
Well we don’t really count because we got lucky with buying a commercial zoned property under conventional loan terms. DO NOT ask me how that happened. I have no answer. So we’re sitting on 1++ acre of land WITH a single family unit there just waiting to rezone it at which point we can clear 120k right away if we wanted. Or build a crazy branch for our business which is the plan. I was always lucky with deals. Almost everything that I buy has to be a deal. If it’s not my price I move on… just came back from a ride on my JD it was a little chilly here but fun fun fun.
WELL....it is good to see Stock.Jock-e and Zukodany and Jwalker realizing nice gains and being successful. That is what this BOARD is all about....success in investing and money matters......and by extension and more importantly....life and family. We ALL benefit from hanging out here.....this thread and ALL the other threads.....taken together.....have a HUGE amount of collective knowledge. ALL of it.......COMPLIMENTS......of all the posters that post on ALL the various threads on this board as well as the MODS and STAFF that run the place. NONE....of this stuff is a ZERO SUM GAME.....there is no reason ALL OF US can not be successful........and......we ALL are and will continue to be so going forward.
Canadian side. +100K or 200 or $500k... it does not make a difference if EVERYWHERE around you is increasing at the same rate lol
Vancouver Canada. WOW.....that has been a tough market for a long time. Quite a change from NC. A very international city. I have played a few times in Vancouver in the past.
We are looking to buy a house within now and 2 years. We are not rushed, but I am addicted to checking the new listings daily. After reading a message about the housing market on this thread, I am inclined to check to see if there is any new listing. In our neighbourhood the most desired houses are sold within a week or two. Before, houses were not sold above asking price, since COVID it is more common. Listings on busy roads AND in need of renovation stay for sale for multiple months. My feeling is that there is low supply of desired listings. Most of the listings are on undesired locations (also personal bias). The media has been telling that, since COVID, all buyers are looking for a house with a large garden or an appartement with a big balcony. So for now there is a lot of competition for the desired listings.
So I had 13 Positions I picked up in February and March, 10 of them I'm happy with and 3 stunk up my list from the moment I purchased them. I sold all 3 of the "less than optimal" picks last week and all the rest of mine started picking up bonus points almost immediately.... any explanations for that? Is it like teams at work where you get one or two slackers hired and the rest of the team's morale starts to suck and when you finally cut them loose, real performance occurs? LoL Go figure. It's been an interesting two quarters for me so far. -Dogtown
Yup this rings true. We’ve noticed that any low scale house, either in size/appearance or location would not sell as quickly, being that we are in a 5 star neighborhood then even entry level houses would sell over the weekend but in poorer neighborhoods they may take a little longer… but the BEAUTIFUL dazzling and REALLY expensive houses will sell as soon as they’re listed. And most of the times without even passing inspection. That’s really terrifying for smart buyers to be honest. But that’s just what happened this time with real estate. It’s NOT like what it was pre 2007 where ANYONE AND EVERYONE got a loan and they could buy anything they wanted. This time the banks/lenders are very strict and BUYERS HAVE ACCESS MONEY and they wanna spend it on the BIGGEST HOUSE on the biggest hill on the biggest side of town
With "stay at home work" being promoted for now, more people are: 1. Less inclined to downsize right now and sell their big home with peaceful garden. 2. People living on a busy road with no garden or balcony are looking for a bigger home with a nice garden in the quiet part of town. Low supply, high demand -> prices go up. It will be interesting to see what will happen when everything goes back to normal and people forget about COVID.
don’t forget about the MASSIVE amount of migration from popular states like NY, CA. That likely will NEVER go back to normal even long after covid is gone and forgotten https://www.bankrate.com/real-estate/states-growing-most-during-pandemic/amp/ my wife and I moved from NY and so did many of our friends, neighbors. Just last week another good old friend of ours moved to FL and 2-3 weeks before him another family member moved to SC. This new trend, which I believe is the BIGGEST reason why we see the current spike in prices, doesn’t seem to go away anytime soon
Some good local real estate posts here. You know my situation with property increases. HERE......since we are in a desirable area of 4200 homes EVERYTHING sells quickly. there is another area of about 3000 homes a few miles away and they sell like hotcakes there also. Seems like to me we are in a once in a lifetime....RESET.....of home prices here and in many parts of the country.
