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The Appraisal Institute on Feb. 14 submitted a letter to the chairs of the House Financial Services Committee and the Subcommittee on Housing, Community Development and Insurance, thanking them for requesting that the Government Accountability Office study the implementation of Title XI of the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery and Enforcement Act of 1989 to protect homeowners from appraisal loopholes.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell addressed Congress Feb. 11 stating that the nation’s economy is healthy and in its 11th year of expansion — the longest in history, Reuters reported. Powell also defended the Fed’s plan to ease strains in the banking system and warned of a possible economic hit due to the coronavirus.
The market for industrial and logistics real estate is forecast to be strong through 2021, according to commercial real estate firm Cushman & Wakefield, Material Handling & Logistics reported Feb. 10. Nearly 460 million square feet is expected to be absorbed, but new supply should surpass demand this year. Vacancy rates should stay around 5%.
The retail, multifamily and office sectors experienced a slowdown during the fourth quarter of 2019, with weakened inventory growth and absorption, according to analytics firm Reis, MBA NewsLink reported Feb. 9. The retail sector saw deliveries drop 45% quarter to quarter, while the multifamily sector saw a 35% drop and the office sector saw a 16% drop.
The demand for warehouse properties, storefronts and land has noticeably increased in states where marijuana use was legalized, according to the Marijuana and Real Estate: A Budding Issue study released Feb. 11 by the National Association of Realtors. The study noted higher housing demand in pot-friendly states, but little change in home value for properties near dispensaries.
Los Angeles topped the list of least affordable housing markets in the country, unseating San Francisco which held the title for two years, the National Association of Home Builders reported Feb. 13. Only 11.3% of homes sold in Los Angeles during the fourth quarter of 2019 were affordable for families making the city’s median income of $73,100.
The median price for a single-family home during the fourth quarter was $274,900, a 6.6% increase from a year earlier when the price was $258,000, the National Association of Realtors reported Feb. 12. Year-over-year increases were reported in 94% of markets.
The average sale price for a luxury home in the U.S. reached $1.63 million during the fourth quarter, up 1.6% from the same point a year ago, according to online real estate marketplace Redfin, HousingWire reported Feb. 10. Luxury home prices experienced slower growth than properties in the other sectors, where gains averaged 5.2%.
The inventory of homes for sale in January was down 13.6% compared to the same point a year ago, which Realtor.com reported Feb. 7 is the lowest level reached since it started tracking such data. The median listing price was $300,000, up 3.4% year-over-year; time on the market decreased two days to an average 86.
More than a quarter of Redfin home searches during the fourth quarter were from people looking to relocate, and Phoenix attracted the greatest interest, Redfin reported Feb. 7. On the other hand, San Francisco had the highest share of residents looking to leave the city — and its $1.32 million median home price.
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