In a WSJ survey, economists lower recession probability below 50% and say Fed is finished raising interest rates It has been quite a ride for mortgage rates over the last two years. As of this writing mortgage rates were around 7.5% (with no points) which is quite...
Commercial real estate is falling: what is causing the decline? (December 2023 update)
US commercial real estate prices have fallen this year for the first time in more than a decade, according to Moody’s Analytics, heightening the risk of more financial stress in the banking industry. What property types are declining? (hint not just office...
CPI falls, Fed likely done raising
What does the recent CPI fall mean for mortgage rates and real estate prices? A broad slowdown in inflation continued in October, likely ending the Federal Reserve’s historic interest rate increases. The slowdown came below most median estimates and the...
Wall street will not bail out the housing market
Fed raises rates 2200% The floor on housing prices drops The real estate party cannot go on forever. We are in a goldilocks scenario where prices are staying high even in the face of doubling mortgage rates. Unfortunately, eventually the porridge cools off! It is...
Fed has lost control of interest rates
Housing industry urges Fed to stop raising rates, does it even matter? Top real estate and banking officials are calling on the Federal Reserve to stop raising interest rates as the industry suffers through surging housing costs and a “historic shortage” of available...
Job gains shatter expectation; impact on real estate
The economists forecasting the jobs data missed big time, with the recent jobs report almost double their predictions. Why is job growth still surging while interest rates hit 20 year highs. What does this mean for future interest rate increases? Does this change...
16 percent drop in Luxury spending, I created a model to predict when real estate prices will fall.
In the past recessions, especially in 2008, just prior to the crash we saw a big pull back in luxury purchases. This was an early indicator of huge drops in real estate prices. Currently we are seeing a resounding change in luxury spending, does this mean luxury...
4 banks fail, Close to 190 banks could collapse, according to study.
After the demise of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank in March, a study on the fragility of the U.S. banking system found that 186 more banks are at risk of failure even if only half of their uninsured depositors (uninsured depositors stand to lose a part...
How will student loan restart impact real estate
As part of a debt-ceiling agreement forged by President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, monthly student loan bills will resume September first. What does the restarting of student loans mean for real estate, interest rates, and the overall economy? How...
Interest rates not best metric for real estate prices, what is better?
For years interest rates were the number one indicator for real estate prices. In this cycle interest rates have more than doubled yet real estate prices have barely budged. If we look back at 2008, the impetus for the large real estate crash was rising interest...
Another commercial property type falls as hard as offices
I continue to hear discussions about the huge plunge in office values while little attention has been given to other commercial property sectors like apartments. Apartment buildings, long considered a real-estate haven, are emerging as the next major trouble spot in...
Banks tighten lending; 46% rejection rate on mortgage loans
It was already difficult for businesses and households to borrow money earlier this year — but after the collapse of three US regional banks and a cascade of rate hikes by the Federal Reserve, getting money has become considerably harder. What does the decline in...
Has the housing market bottomed out? Will housing prices continue to rise? What does this mean for interest rates
Like most, I have been surprised at the recent upward movement in prices. Did we just experience the shortest housing cycle ever? Are housing prices going to continue their recent upward swing? Why are housing prices now moving higher after a very shallow decline...
The largest buyer of mortgages not buying a soft landing; what are mortgage rates in 2024?
Both the stock and bond markets are partying like its 99 again. Fannie Mae, the largest buyer of US mortgages, is not buying into the theory that a soft landing is the base case for the economy. What is Fannie Mae predicting for inflation and in turn interest rates? ...
Banks face higher capital requirements: 50% of banks disappear.
Major banks are facing one of the biggest regulatory overhauls since the financial crisis of 2008, setting up a major clash over the amount of capital that they have to set aside to weather downturns. At the same time regional banks are already struggling with...
New Senate bill, predatory investing, to curb corporate investors from buying up single-family homes
Lawmakers introduced a bill Tuesday aimed at curtailing investor activity in the housing market that they say is driving up home prices. The Stop Predatory Investing Act is targeting single family investors. What is in the newly proposed bill and how will this impact...
Why do consumers keep spending and how does this impact real estate
According to a recent Federal Reserve Report, fourteen million mortgages were refinanced during the COVID refinance boom, and these refinances will have effects on the mortgage market, real estate, and the general economy for years to come. An astonishing 430 billion...
Rising Rates increase Distressed Homeowners. Regulators have a fix.
I always cringe when I see a press release that “regulators” have a solution! FHA has yet another new proposal that sounds great on the surface, but as typical misses some very important items that will cost taxpayers millions or considerably more as government...
Wages continue higher, productivity falls fastest in 75 years, impact on real estate, inflation, and rates
US labor productivity tumbled by 7.5% in the first quarter of 2023 – the largest decline in worker output per hour since 1947, according to Labor Department data released Thursday. What does declining productivity mean for interest rates, commercial and residential...
Hot inflation puts further rate hike in play, impact on real estate
Although the market rejoiced in the recent fed “skip”, as you dig into the numbers more the outcome is a lot less sanguine. Why does inflation continue running hotter than anticipated? What does this mean for interest rates and real estate? What happens when...
New government rule radically changes appraisals
Big changes are ahead for automated appraisals. The government feels that automated models show bias in valuation so they have proposed a new rule that will radically alter appraisals. Unfortunately, the new rules will have some large unintended consequences for...
Home Depot slides, house prices stabilize, consumers will keep spending
Interesting times we are in. Consumers keep spending big on services like travel and eating out, but on the flip side Home Depot just reported its first drop since the pandemic. On the other hand Target tops earnings estimates. What is driving the continued...
Consumer debt passes $17 trillion for the first time despite slide in mortgage demand
Households added $148 billion in overall debt, bringing the total to $17.05 trillion, according to a report released by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York on Monday. Balances are now $2.9 trillion higher than just before the pandemic. What categories are...
2023 real estate predictions update: Mortgage rates decline, banks fail, impact on real estate prices
A lot has changed since my year end update, four major banks have collapsed, and the market is now signaling a recession with interest rates beginning to fall. What does this mean for real estate in the second half of the year? Are there any big changes to my...



























