Originally published on September 6, 2023, by the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City.
The inventory of single-family homes for sale fell in nearly all Fed districts during the past month, resulting in a boost in new construction activity, the Federal Reserve reported Sept. 6 in its latest Beige Book. The construction of affordable housing has become strained in many districts amid rising financing costs and higher insurance premiums.
Originally published on September 6, 2023, by Fannie Mae.
In the appraisal and appraisal report review processes, special consideration must be given to properties that represent unique housing for the subject neighborhood. Mortgages secured by unique or nontraditional types of housing, including, but not limited to, earth houses, geodesic domes, and log houses are eligible for sale to Fannie Mae provided the appraiser has adequate information to develop a reliable opinion of market value. It is not necessary for one or more of the comparable sales to be of the same design and appeal as the property that is being appraised, although appraisal accuracy is enhanced by using comparable sales that are the most similar to the subject property. On a case-by-case basis, both the appraiser and the underwriter must independently determine whether there is sufficient information available to develop a reliable opinion of market value. This will depend on the extent of the differences between the special or unique property and the more traditional types of houses in the neighborhood and the number of such properties that have already been sold in the neighborhood.
Originally published on September 15, 2023, by the Face Value Appraisal Insitute Podcast.
The Appraisal Institute on Aug. 31 released its latest episode of the Face Value podcast, “Dedication to Diversity: A Conversation About the Appraiser Diversity Initiative.” Hosts Tonia Vailas, MAI, AI-GRS, and Warren Boizot, SRA, AI-RRS, are joined by Smedmore Bernard Jr., MAI, Brent Quashie and Elana Wroten to share their experiences and the advice they have for others. Additionally, they talk about the new William S. Harps DEI Award.
Originally published on September 12, 2023, by the Appraisal Institute.
The Appraisal Institute, the nation’s largest professional association of real estate appraisers, announced today that the organization’s Practical Applications of Real Estate Appraisal program (AI PAREA) for the licensed residential path has launched broadly, and registration is now open.
Originally published on August 29, 2023, by the United States Environmental Protection Agency.
On August 29, 2023, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Department of the Army (the agencies) issued a final rule to amend the final “Revised Definition of ‘Waters of the United States’” rule, published in the Federal Register on January 18, 2023. This final rule conforms the definition of “waters of the United States” to the U.S. Supreme Court’s May 25, 2023, decision in the case of Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency. Parts of the January 2023 Rule are invalid under the Supreme Court’s interpretation of the Clean Water Act in the Sackett decision. Therefore, the agencies have amended key aspects of the regulatory text to conform it to the Court’s decision. Read more about the conforming rule.
Originally published on August 23, 2023 by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
The Securities and Exchange Commission today adopted new rules and rule amendments to enhance the regulation of private fund advisers and update the existing compliance rule that applies to all investment advisers. The new rules and amendments are designed to protect private fund investors by increasing transparency, competition, and efficiency in the private funds market.
Originally published on August 28, 2023 by Phillippa Maister for GlobeSt.com.
Restaurants have become attractive targets for acquisitions despite ongoing challenges with sales rising 10.3% over the previous year in the second quarter of 2023 following a 3.2% gain in Q1, according to BizBuySell, an online business for sale marketplace. Furthermore, restaurants that sold in Q2 generated more revenue and buyers paid more for them.
Originally published on August 21, 2023, by Barbara Ballinger for GlobeSt.com.
Over the next two years, CRE borrowers will face more than $1 trillion in debt maturities. Some may be able to refinance or restructure their debt, but others may have to sell assets as lending sources become hard to access.
Originally published on August 8, 2023, by Anneliese Mahoney for the Mortgage Banker's Association.
Berkadia, New York, in its 2023 U.S. Student Housing Preleasing Report found student housing operating fundamentals are among the strongest in the commercial real estate sector, with the fall 2023 lease-up cycle the fastest on record.
Originally published on July 27, 2023 by the White House.
resident Biden’s economic vision is about building an economy from the middle out and bottom-up, not the top down— that’s Bidenomics. A critical foundation of that vision, and the central goal of the Biden-Harris Administration’s Housing Supply Action Plan, is an economy where everyone has access to a safe and affordable home. That vision means lowering costs, including by building and preserving more housing, particularly for lower- and middle-income households. Today’s announcements will lower housing costs by tackling challenges that have stifled affordable housing for decades, as well as seizing immediate opportunities:
Originally published on July 26, 2023 by Laura Pop-Badiu for the Coworking Cafe.
Coworking — which has consistently been on the rise and significantly fueled by the increase in remote and hybrid work — continues its upward trajectory across the U.S. And, with more flexible workspaces opening their doors every day and new operators entering the market, the changes in this industry are notable, even in the span of just a few months.
Originally published in July 2023 by the Federal Reserve.
The July 2023 Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey on Bank Lending Practices (SLOOS) addressed changes in the standards and terms on, and demand for, bank loans to businesses and households over the past three months, which generally correspond to the second quarter of 2023.1
Originally published on August 1, 2023, by Troy Green for the National Association of Realtors.
oreign buyers purchased $53.3 billion worth of U.S. existing homes from April 2022 through March 2023, slipping 9.6% from the previous 12-month period, according to a new report from the National Association of Realtors®. Foreign buyers purchased 84,600 properties, down 14.2% from the prior year and the fewest number of homes bought since 2009, when NAR began tracking this data. Overall, U.S. existing-home sales totaled 5.03 million in 2022, down 17.8% from 2021.
Originally published in July 2023 by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau stated in a July 26 supervisory highlights report that it found some mortgage lenders violated the Equal Credit Opportunity Act by discriminating against borrowers in protected classes, such as race, national origin, sex and age. The CFPB directed lenders to review, identify and provide relief to any applicant negatively affected by these violations.
Originally published on July 21, 2023, by Christine Stricker for ATTOM.
According to ATTOM’s newly released Q2 2023 U.S. Home Sales Report, profit margins on median-priced single-family home and condo sales in the U.S. increased to 47.7 percent in the second quarter – the first gain in a year.
Originally published on July 26, 2023 by Jeff Cox for CNBC.com.
The Federal Reserve on Wednesday approved a much-anticipated interest rate hike that takes benchmark borrowing costs to their highest level in more than 22 years.
The most flood-prone U.S. counties saw 384,000 more people move in than out in 2021 and 2022—a 103% increase from the prior two years, when 189,000 more people moved in than out, according to a new report from Redfin (redfin.com), the technology-powered real estate brokerage.
The same trend took hold in the places most vulnerable to wildfires and heat as the pandemic homebuying boom and a housing affordability crisis pushed Americans into disaster-prone areas.
Originally published on July 13, 2023, by the McKinsey Global Institute.
When the COVID-19 pandemic began, it dramatically changed the way people worked, lived, and shopped in cities around the world. The starkest change was where and how they worked. Obeying lockdowns and office closures, tired of uncomfortable masks, and enabled by remote-work technology, many employees abruptly retreated from traditional offices to home offices. Many of those employees, newly freed from their daily commutes, chose to move out of urban cores. And now that fewer of them were working and living near urban stores, fewer of them shopped there. In recent months, some of those behavioral shifts have slowed. Others persist, particularly among office employees continuing to engage in hybrid work (that is, a combination of remote and in-office work).
Originally published on July 12, 2023, by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.
Demand for residential real estate remains high, but low inventories of available properties continue to dampen sales, according to the latest Beige Book released by the Federal Reserve on July 12. Construction of both residential and commercial buildings declined during the same timeframe.
Originally published on July 6, 2023, by Sophia Wedeen for the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University.
The supply of low-cost rentals fell by 3.9 million units over the last decade, according to our latest State of the Nation’s Housing report. As a new interactive tool (Figure 1) released in conjunction with the report shows, the supply of low-cost rentals decreased in every single state, leaving lower- and middle-income renters with even fewer housing options they can afford.
