As I was working from home the other day on the deck, my dogs started barking and I look over my shoulder to see this guy staring at me… I’m looking forward to getting back to the office 😊 Most companies have now realized that they can work as...
The mortgage market is an interesting animal. Long term mortgage rates traditionally track the 10 year treasury and historically trade in a very narrow band, approximately one percent higher than the 10 year treasuries. This would put mortgages today in the low 2%...
Commercial property values were recently hitting peaks with investors rushing to invest in high quality commercial real estate as yields on other assets like treasuries continued to languish. Now the tides have turned with some high quality commercial property now...
When the shutdowns from the pandemic rippled through the economy, I saw statistics that up to a third of all mortgages could end in default. At the same time, home sales of previously owned homes just dropped to a 10 year low. What is going on in the housing...
Do you know where the next mortgage defaults will occur in your city? What cities and zip codes are most at risk during this recession? In every recession, there are two predictors of default/loss, collateral and equity. What does the data tell us today?...
Presidential nominee Biden has rolled out his proposed tax plan with two major pillars that will impact real estate pros. 1) Elimination of the 1031 exchange provision 2) elimination of long term capital gains. These two changes, if passed, will have huge...
From March 1 through the end of May, Americans deferred debt payments on more than 100 million accounts, according to credit-reporting firm TransUnion, a sign of widespread financial distress. Millions are out of work, yet house prices are increasing in most...
Nike is a bellwether for the retail industry and general economy generating over 40 billion in annual revenue making it one of the largest athletic retailers in the world. Since 2006 revenue has consistently increased every year. In June, Nike announced that sales...
Happy summer to everyone, hopefully you are taking some time to get outside with your friends and family to de stress . Last week, I wrote about the general economy not following a V shaped economic pattern, which I still believe, but housing seems to be marching to...
The stock market has been pricing in a fast and rapid V-shaped recovery, yet 106 million people and various businesses like United Airlines are painting a radically different picture. As Alan Greenspan, the former fed chief, famously said: markets can exhibit...
We are still funding in cash. Before the Pandemic, the United States economy was on track with the longest running bull market, record low inflation wages increasing, record low unemployment, and historically low mortgage rates. Even with all this good news, there...
2020 is now the year of the moose! Why the moose? Wrong place wrong time; 4 tips to survive. Last week, I got up early for a quick run. I grabbed my shoes and Luna (my Siberian husky) and hit the trail (pic of trail above). About a mile into the run I hear...
NY city is changing the real estate game implementing a ban on the NYC rental broker fee and making a host of other changes. At the same time New York leads all U.S. metro areas as the largest net loser with 277 people moving every day. What are the new laws? How...
We are in an interesting economic cycle. In the last recession, house prices plummeted up to 60% in some areas. We currently hit the highest unemployment rate since the great depression yet house prices continue to appreciate. This is exactly the opposite of what...
Would you bet your life on interest rates? Life insurance companies are making a huge gamble on rates, they are willing to bet their life and yours on the direction of interest rates. Why are life insurance companies suspending new policies? What does this mean for...
I'm doing my part for social distancing! As I’m working from home, I looked out the window and noticed a lone biker weaving while riding down the road. They suddenly came inches away from hitting a parked car. Were they drunk? No, they were wearing a mask and their...
I hope everyone is doing well in light of the recent events. I was recently asked: “Did the Federal Reserve trigger a housing market crash?” What happened? The Coronavirus struck, the fed had to act swiftly to mitigate the damage, but by flooding the market with...
Disney World closes, ski resorts shut down, Hawaii quarantines all visitors , and travel comes to a screeching halt. What happens to the “sharing economy” when people stop sharing? What does this mean for Airbnb and companies like WeWork? For almost 60% of people...
I always love spring in the Rocky Mountains, to see the pull of the seasons with snow and flowers starting to bloom. Eventually spring always wins 🙂 If you read the news, it sounds like the world is crumbling with 22 million jobs lost and a predicted 30% GDP...
We are still lending in cash! It is amazing that the federal reserve has flooded the markets with cash enabling banks to borrower at historic rates. Furthermore, banks are considerably healthier today than they were in 2008. Unfortunately, this is not translating to...
We are still funding in cash! The 2020 summer Olympics in Tokyo have officially been rescheduled to 2021. As the world copes with the Coronavirus pandemic, cities and countries around the world have shut borders and ordered stay at home orders to stop the spread of...
Like many of you I had a “rocky” ride in the last real estate recession and successfully learned many “million-dollar” lessons that were very painful. One of the key takeaways from the last recession is that risks lurk in plain sight. Hindsight 20-20 it was...
The Coronavirus pandemic has thrown the economy off a cliff leaving many equity rich property owners with no cash flow. The pandemic has caused many residential and commercial tenants to defer or totally miss payments as the economy shuts down. Property owners are...
We are still lending as we fund and hold our loans in cash! If you have been watching the mortgage market, your head is likely spinning. Last week, a mortgage rates drop for 30-year fixed mortgages hit a record low of 3% less than a week later rates have...
