Data Center Vacancy Declines to Record Low During First Half of 2022: CBRE Report 

Originally published on October 16, 2022, by Michael Tucker for the Mortgage Bankers Association.

The North American data center market added significant new supply this year, but overall vacancy declined to a record low, reported CBRE, Dallas.

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Rulemaking Proposed for Employee, Contractor Status

Originally published on October 11, 2022, by Mandy McClure and Edwin Nieves for the US Department of Labor.

The U.S. Department of Labor will publish a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Oct. 13 to help employers and workers determine whether a worker is an employee or an independent contractor under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

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Square Footage Costs More in the Suburbs than in Urban Centers, Redfin Reports

Originally published on October 18, 2022, by Angela Cherry for Redfin.

As home prices fall fastest in cities and mortgage rates rise, the value of a square foot in the suburbs has caught up with that of urban centers. That’s according to a new report from Redfin (redfin.com), the technology-powered real estate brokerage, which found that space in suburban homes was worth more than space in urban homes in September for the first time since Redfin started tracking this data in 2018. The typical home in suburban neighborhoods nationwide was worth $206 per square foot during the four weeks ending September 25, just slightly higher than $205 in urban neighborhoods.

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Atlanta Boasts Most New Apartment Units, Study Shows  

Originally published on September 21, 2022, by Maria Gatea for StorageCafe.

Downtown living can be quite polarizing – some people love the hustle and bustle of city center areas while others tend to avoid them in favor of quieter neighborhoods a little further out. But even with the rapid development of life in the suburbs, downtown living never lost its shine. In fact, according to our latest study, the country’s major cities experienced a resurgence of apartment construction in their central neighborhoods over the last decade.

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Member Profile: Kelli Mayhew, MAI, SRA

I came to the appraisal profession from the lending world in 1996 and never looked back.  I am constantly fascinated by the myriad ways investors develop and make money from real estate. 

My firm is headquartered in Charlotte, NC, and our practice is primarily focused on markets located throughout the Carolinas.  The most unique property I have appraised was also the first property I appraised (with my supervisor), i.e., the South Carolina State Museum.  The museum was housed in the historic Columbia Mill building along the river.  The conversion of the museum was spectacularly beautiful.  After appraising a property like that, I could never imagine doing anything else.  

Mortgage Rates at 20-year High, Fueling Concerns about Affordability: Freddie Mac

Originally published on October 13, 2022, by Angela Waugaman for Freddie Mac.

Freddie Mac (OTCQB: FMCC) today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®), showing the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 6.92 percent.

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Small-cap CRE Market Hits $3.7 Trillion in Q3: Data

Originally published on October 10, 2022, by Randy Fuchs for Boxwood Means.

The aggregate market value of small-cap commercial real estate properties increased to a new peak during the third quarter despite an emerging slowdown in sales transactions and asset price growth.

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Small-cap CRE Market Hits $3.7 Trillion in Q3: Data

Originally published on October 10, 2022, by Randy Fuchs for Boxwood Means.

The aggregate market value of small-cap commercial real estate properties increased to a new peak during the third quarter despite an emerging slowdown in sales transactions and asset price growth.

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New Appraisal Institute Book Addressed Residential Market Analysis

Originally published on October 19, 2022, by the Appraisal Institute.

Residential Market Analysis and Highest and Best Use by Mark R. Ratterman, MAI, SRA, explores how appraisers can plan and perform detailed market and highest and best use analyses that lead to credible and supportable value conclusions. The book uses real-world examples to demonstrate productivity analysis, examine supply and demand relationships in residential markets and explore best practices for researching data sources and applying statistical tools.

Purchase Book

Nearly Two-thirds of Homebuyers Hesitant to Buy in Disaster-prone Areas: Redfin

Originally published on October 7, 2022, by Isabelle Novak for Redfin.

Nearly two-thirds (62%) of U.S. residents who plan to buy or sell a home in the next year are hesitant to move to an area at risk of natural disasters, extreme temperatures and/or rising sea levels, according to a new report from Redfin (redfin.com), the technology-powered real estate brokerage. The share is even higher among younger generations, high-earners, Democrats and people living in the Northeast.

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Americans Willing to Buy a Haunted House: Survey

Originally published on October 10, 2022, by Jaime Dunaway-Seale for Real Estate Witch.

In this monster of a market, buyers are willing to overlook just about anything to own a home, including a few ghosts.

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Appraisal Institute Releases Podcast on Lender Work, Shares Advice and Tips

The Appraisal Institute on Sept. 23 released its latest episode of the Face Value podcast, “Lender Work for Appraisers: Facts, Myths and Opportunities.” Host Warren Boizot, SRA, AI-RRS, is joined by Michelle Rogers, SRA, and Ken Dicks, MAI, for a conversation on ways in which appraisers and lenders can successfully work together. They share their personal experiences in this area and offer advice and tips from the field.

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Commercial and Multifamily Lending Drops, but Rebound Expected in 2023: MBA  

Originally published on October 5, 2022, by Mortgage Bankers Association.

The Mortgage Bankers Association, in an updated baseline forecast, said total commercial and multifamily mortgage borrowing and lending is expected to fall to $766 billion this year, down 14 percent from 2021 totals ($891 billion).

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Single-tenant Cap Rates Up in Q3: The Boulder Group

Cap rates in the single-tenant net lease sector were up slightly in all sectors during the third quarter, the first time in two years with consecutive quarterly increases, The Boulder Group reported on Oct. 6 in its Q3 2022 Net Lease Market report. Retail reached 5.86%, office hit 6.8% and industrial came in at 6.61%.

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Mortgage Rates Take Slight Dip but Remain High, Freddie Mac Reported

Originally published on Ocotber 6, 2022, by Angela Waugaman for Freddie Mac.

Mortgage rates fell slightly during the past week due to ongoing economic uncertainty, Freddie Mac reported Oct. 6 in its Primary Mortgage Market Survey. Rates remain higher than they were a year ago, which is making housing more expensive for potential homebuyers.

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Remote Work Largely Responsible for Home Price Surge: Fed

Originally published on September 26, 2022, by Catarina Saraiva for Bloomberg.

The shift to working from home drove more than half of the increase in house and rent prices during the pandemic and will likely drive up costs and inflation going forward as the shift becomes permanent, according to research from the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. 

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GSEs Completed Nearly 97,000 Foreclosure Prevention Actions in Q2: FHFA

Originally published on September 22, 2022, by the Mortgage Banker's Association.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency released its second quarter Foreclosure Prevention and Refinance Report, showing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac completed 96,945 foreclosure prevention actions during the quarter, raising the total number of homeowners who have been helped to 6,591,002 since start of conservatorships in September 2008.

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Sun Belt Cities Lead Nation in Canceled Home Purchase Agreements, Redfin Reports

Originally published on September 26, 2022, by Angela Cherry for Redfin.

Nationwide, roughly 64,000 home-purchase agreements fell through in August, equal to 15.2% of homes that went under contract that month. That’s up from 12.1% a year earlier and is comparable with July’s revised rate of 15.5%, according to a new report from Redfin (redfin.com), the technology-powered real estate brokerage.

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Pending Home Sales Drop 2% Nationwide, NAR Data Shows

Originally published on September 28, 2022, by the National Association of Realtors.

Pending home sales sagged for the third straight month in August, according to the National Association of REALTORS®. Three out of four major regions experienced month-over-month decreases in transactions, however, the West saw a modest gain. Year-over-year, all four regions posted double-digit declines.

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Another Successful Real Estate Valuation Conference

85+ attendees gathered virtually on September 7 to learn from Mark Vitner, Wells Fargo; Vanessa Jenkins & Chuck Smith, Preston Development; Chuck McShane, CoStar; Gerald Quattlebaum, Flagship Healthcare Properties; Edward Martinez, Corelogic; Griff Jenkins, Tiverton Advisors; Adam Johnston, NewRez; and Justin Smith & Rob Speir, Colliers International. Conference presentation and discussions involved the trends, challenges, and successes in the agricultural, commercial, retail, residential, office, industrial, healthcare, and financial sectors of the industry. Thank you to our event sponsors for your support and thank you the REVC planning committee, in particular, thank you to longtime REVC Chair, Rocky McElhannon, MAI, SRA, AI-GRS for your leadership and conference guidance. We look forward to seeing everyone again next year!