Market Intel

Since the onset of the pandemic, the capital markets have slowed. For the borrowers that have been able to secure financing, the market uncertainty has changed the length of escrow and the types of properties lenders will finance. As a result, fewer deals have closed, even for investors willing to buy in this market—but there is new financing alternative that has some buyers excited: seller financing. In a seller financing deal, the transaction closes immediately

Las Vegas and Phoenix are the top markets for both inbound and outbound relocations for Southern California, according to new research from Zumper. The company’s migration report shows that both Las Vegas and Phoenix were the top cities for relocation searches to and from Southern California. For inbound relocation, housing affordability played a major role in residents’ decision to move to Phoenix and Las Vegas. “A big factor for this migration is that Phoenix and

AUSTIN, TX—Up until this year, April 15 was an important date, representing the deadline for US residents and citizens to file federal income taxes. However, in the current COVID-19 environment, that drop-dead deadline has been pushed to July 15. The upcoming mid-July deadline is also important for those making use of §1031 of the US Internal Revenue Code, which allows capital gains tax deferrals on investment property sales. The IRC section, “Exchange of real property

Multifamily properties are expected to experience a sharp decline followed by a fast recovery through 2020, according to a report by CBRE. CBRE’s economic advisers predict the multifamily market will reach its bottom in the fourth quarter of 2020 and begin recovery in the first quarter of 2021. Vacancy will rise to 7.2 percent by the end of 2020, which is a full 3.1 percentage points higher than the end of 2021. CBRE predicts that

So far the multifamily asset class has fared well during the pandemic, with the vast majority of renters staying on top of their monthly obligations. In addition, the capital markets for apartments have remained open for business during this time.  However a set of unfortunate factors are coalescing to create what Ivan Kaufman, CEO of Arbor Realty Trust, says will be the perfect storm for multifamily. These include the expected end to the supplemental unemployment

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are providing additional protections to support renters and multifamily property owners experiencing financial difficulties as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, announced the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA). The government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) are allowing servicers to extend forbearance agreements for multifamily owners for up to three months and for a total forbearance up to six months, according to the FHFA. In addition, while the properties are in forbearance, the landlords

Since the first case of Covid-19 was confirmed on January 21, 2020, the ongoing crisis, now in its sixth month, has taken a significant toll on the economy. Roughly 21 million Americans are unemployed and although May 2020’s unemployment rate fell to 13.3% from 14.7% in April, the impact of the crisis could still take years to recover, says a report by the Kroll Bond Rating Agency. The consequence for multifamily landlords, however, is that