This week in rental property, average long-term U.S. mortgage rates inched up to 3.91 percent from last week’s 3.90 percent. Federal Reserve announced to keep interest rates unchanged. Forbes and Fidelity discusses the significance of the Fed’s decision. Also, we capture Janet Yellen’s quote on the housing market from her press conference earlier this week. NAHB drills down on the rental housing stock based on the Census Bureau’s 2013 American Housing Survey. Rental housing market is attracting investors into ‘built-for-rent’ properties. Lastly, we take a look at top 5 housing markets for global investors.
TWiRP
30-year mortgage rates rise again
For the second straight week, average long-term U.S. mortgage rates inched up this week as financial markets awaited the Federal Reserve’s crucial decision on interest rates. Mortgage giant Freddie Mac said Thursday the average rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage edged up to 3.91 percent from 3.90 percent a week earlier. The rate on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages rose to 3.11 percent from 3.10 percent: http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-mortgage-rates-20150917-story.html
The Fed Decision: Rates Stay Zero-Bound
After months of speculation, the Federal Reserve decided to leave its target borrowing rate unchanged, at 0%—0.25%, at its two-day meeting this week. Earlier in the summer, many investors expected the central bank to raise rates in September for the first time in nearly a decade, as U.S. unemployment continued to fall and GDP continued to grow. But as inflation has come under pressure, the Fed elected to maintain its accommodative position. Viewpoints checked in with Jurrien Timmer, director of global macro at Fidelity, to discuss the significance of the decision.
: http://www.forbes.com/sites/fidelity/2015/09/18/the-fed-decision-rates-stay-zero-bound/
Janet Yellen Sees a ‘Very Depressed’ Housing Market
While Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen heaped praise on the U.S. labor market in her press conference on Thursday, the housing market got little love.
Residential real estate “remains very depressed,” she told reporters after announcing at the end of a two-day meeting that policy makers had decided against raising the benchmark interest rate. “Demand for housing should be there and should materialize as the job market improves and income growth improves.”
: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-09-17/janet-yellen-sees-a-very-depressed-housing-market
What Kind of Homes are in the Rental Housing Stock?
Based on the Census Bureau’s 2013 American Housing Survey, the rental stock increased 1. 4 million from 2011 to 2013 to a total of 40 million residences. Contrary to popular expectations, most rental homes are smaller properties, single-family homes and multifamily buildings with 2 to 4 units
: http://eyeonhousing.org/2015/09/what-kind-of-homes-are-in-the-rental-housing-stock-2/
Interest Builds in Houses Designed for Rental Market
Pent-up demand for housing coupled with a dropping rate of homeownership is driving interest in “built-for-rent” homes. Roughly 25,000 detached, single-family homes were built for the rental market in 2014, and that number should increase over the next several years, according to John Burns Real Estate Consulting, a U.S. housing consulting and research company based in Irvine, Calif.
Top 5 housing markets for global investors
The U.S. has been named the hottest market for global residential property in a survey of 14 countries by real estate advisors Savills. The researchers analyzed economic and demographic trends to forecast how much prices in popular cities will rise over the next five years. And the essential ingredients for solid returns? A combination of population growth, rising wealth and limited housing supply
: http://money.cnn.com/2015/09/15/real_estate/real-estate-residential-top-markets/