Only 35% of Americans Think It's a Good Time to Buy a Home, Reports Fannie Mae

(Source: fool.com)  

by Maurie Backman | June 20, 2021

Homebuyer sentiment is down. Could that lead the housing market to cool off?

Inflated home prices. Record low inventory. Bidding wars. All-cash offers.

These are some of the most commonly used terms to describe today's housing market. It's not surprising, then, to learn that homebuyer sentiment is down on a national level.

Only 35% of Americans think that now is a good time to buy a home, according to the Fannie Mae Home Purchase Sentiment Index. That's a significant change compared to the 53% of people who thought it was a good time to buy a home back in March.

So what gives?

While mortgage rates have remained competitive throughout the year, housing inventory has grown increasingly sparse as buyers keep scooping up homes at record speed. Throw in the fact that home prices keep rising, largely due to bidding wars, and it's no wonder so many buyers are discouraged.

Plus, when we think back to March, many potential buyers back then may have assumed that once spring kicked into gear, housing inventory would pick up. That's because spring is generally the time of year when listings tend to increase.

But that didn't happen this year. Instead, sellers have been sitting tight (likely due to COVID-related or economic concerns) and inventory has largely remained stagnant. And now, after months of grappling with a housing market that's extremely unfriendly to buyers, it could be that many have had enough.

Will buyers start to back off this summer?

It's clear that most Americans don't think it's a good time to buy a home. But does that mean that those who are in the market for a place to buy will actually put their home searches on hold?

It's tricky to say. Mortgage rates continue to sit at attractive levels, but some buyers may be concerned about them rising in time. And that could lead a lot of people to move forward with their home search plans rather than wait for more inventory to become available.

On the other hand, mortgage rates are likely to stay low through the end of the year and very possibly beyond. If buyers come to realize that, they may decide to stop spinning their wheels and instead take a few months off to wait for inventory to open up and prices to come down.

Once buyers back off a bit, eased demand could help bring home values back down to earth. And that could make for a more approachable housing market later in the year.

It's difficult to predict how strong buyer demand will be in the coming months. Some buyers might choose to press on and refuse to give up on their homeownership dreams, while others may decide to take a break after many months of fruitless searching.

Either way, it's pretty clear that Americans have had it with today's real estate market and that there are many reasons why today just isn't a great time to buy a home -- even if mortgage rates are still quite attractive in their own right.

Rents for Single Family Homes Are Soaring

(Source: fool.com) 

by Maurie Backman | June 27, 2021

It's costing tenants more money than ever to rent a standalone home.

Ask anyone who's trying to buy a home these days, and you'll hear that it's really difficult. That's due in part to a lack of inventory, but also to competitive mortgage rates that are fueling buyer demand and causing home prices to rise.

But it's not just homes available to purchase that have soaring prices. Rent prices for single-family homes are also up, and if that trend continues, it's apt to put a real strain on a lot of household budgets.

Why are rent prices up?

Single-family home rents rose 5.3% in April of 2021 compared to the previous April, reports CoreLogic. That's the largest year-over-year gain in nearly 15 years.

Why are rent prices climbing for detached homes? Part of it likely has to do with an uptick in demand.

For many families, single-family homes became more attractive than homes in multi-unit apartment buildings during the pandemic. Renting a single-family home gave people more room to spread out. And over the past year, it's also meant not having to share an elevator, laundry room, or other common areas with fellow tenants during a massive health crisis.

And as mentioned above, home values have risen on a whole, so landlords may be facing higher property taxes as a result. As such, they may be seeking to pass those costs on to their tenants.

Let's also remember that a lot of landlords have seen their income take a hit over the past year or more due to the eviction ban that's been in place since the start of the pandemic. Landlords may be raising rent prices to compensate for that loss of revenue.

Can you afford a rent hike?

If you rent a single-family home or are looking to do so, it's important to not get in over your head. As a general rule, you should not spend more than 30% of your take-home pay on monthly rent.

Now, there are a few exceptions to this rule. If you live in an area where home and rent prices are always inflated, like New York City, you may have to spend a higher percentage of your income on rent. But in cities like New York, you also might get away with not having a car, so lower transportation costs could help offset higher housing costs.

But generally speaking, sticking to that 30% threshold is a smart idea. So if you're in the market for a new single-family rental, you may want to give yourself plenty of time to scope out affordable options. And if you're already renting a single-family home and your landlord notifies you of a rent increase, try to push back. If you've been a tenant in good standing for quite some time, you may be able to sway a landlord to leave your rent where it is or impose a more modest increase instead.

The housing market today is pretty crazy, and many buyers are getting in over their heads by taking on mortgages they can't afford. Do yourself a favor and don't make the same mistake by renting a home that's way outside your financial comfort zone.

Millennials Are Dominating the Housing Market With Mortgage Rates Near All-Time Lows

(Source: fool.com)  

by Kimberly Rotter | June 28, 2021

Buying homes and building wealth -- millennials and Gen Z are driving the housing market.

Millennials are the strongest buying force in the housing market. They're the largest cohort of home buyers, capitalizing on the advantageous combination of income stability and low mortgage rates. That's something that Better.com knows well.

"Millennials have made up over half of all Better's purchase applications per month" in the first quarter of 2021, says Emanuel Santa-Donato, VP, Capital Markets & Lead Acquisition at Better.

America's largest generation got a late start buying homes

Millennials are now the biggest generation in the U.S. The youngest are currently 25 years old. That's a little young for some to buy a home -- but definitely in the right age range.

Part of the reason millennials are such strong contenders in today's market is that as a group they delayed buying homes. Many of them came of home-buying age during the Great Recession. Millennials saw millions of homeowners stand helplessly by as their home values plummeted to below (sometimes far below) their mortgage balances. It was only natural that millennials wanted to wait for the housing market chaos to calm before taking the plunge on what's usually the largest purchase of a person's life.

This delay means that many millennials were more advanced in their careers before they bought a home. They had more time to increase their earnings and more time to save toward a down payment, both factors that can make you a stronger mortgage applicant.

Gen Z is now ready to buy homes

Younger buyers waited out the housing market crash, so the median age to buy a home is now somewhere in the 40s. But that doesn't mean Generation Z is out of the picture. According to a 2020 report from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the median age for first-time home buyers is 32, and half of all first-timers are younger. The oldest members of Gen Z are 24 or 25 right now -- and they're starting to look for ways to build wealth.

"We have seen an interesting increase in Gen Z (the youngest generation aged 25 and below) customers taking advantage of historically low interest rates and purchasing homes across the country," says Santa-Donato. "The number of Gen Z applications at Better increased 57% from January to March, and was up 124% year-over-year from March 2020."

Mortgage rates remain at historic lows

You might be tired of hearing that mortgage interest rates are historically low. You might even be skeptical of the "historic" part, especially if you're young enough that mortgage rates have been low the entire time you've been looking at the housing market. But in your parents' lifetime, a 14% interest rate on a mortgage was a real thing.

Interest rate has a huge effect on affordability. If you can afford a $1,000 loan payment, you can borrow around $240,000 at 3% -- but just $85,000 at 14%.

That's an extreme example, but consider that since ancient times, interest rates between 6% and 12% have been the norm. At 8%, your $1,000 payment would get you a $140,000 loan right now. When we talk about today's low rates, make no mistake about it, we are really talking about how much home you can buy.

Rates are guaranteed to fluctuate. Once they go up, it might be a long time before they come back down to what they are today. At the time of this writing, the interest rate on an average 30-year fixed rate mortgage is around 3%.

Homeownership builds wealth

Buying a home can help you build wealth. The Urban Institute, a think tank that studies economic policy, says that most families benefit economically by buying a home. Owning is more financially advantageous than renting for the majority of U.S. households. Homeownership is an especially effective financial tool for lower income households.

Millennials and Gen Z are getting competitively priced loans from lenders like Better Mortgage. According to Santa-Donato, Better funded $25 billion in loans in 2020 and $14 billion in the first quarter of 2021 alone.

The earlier you start your home-buying journey, the more equity you can build and the greater the likelihood that you can upgrade to a more valuable home. Millennials are now building equity and Gen Z understands that an early start can be to their advantage.

Bigger Apartments Emerging: Investing Implications

(Source: millionacres.com) 

Jun 28, 2021 by Marc Rapport

The coronavirus pandemic sent millions of American office workers home to do their jobs in a setting more suited for sleeping, eating, and spending time with family or friends.

For many who do their living in apartments, that presented a particular space crunch. And as expectations rise for the work-from-home (WFH) trend to become a permanent thing for many, some builders of new apartments are responding in kind, adding more space that they fully expect to be able to rent at a correspondingly higher price.

That trend is now showing up in the data. For instance, RentCafé analysts have determined that more than a third of U.S. cities are now seeing larger apartments being built, by an average increase of just under 50 square feet.

That sounds like enough to accommodate a small home office and maybe keep that second bedroom, too, or add a bathroom, depending on the design, doesn’t it?

Larger apartments found in 33 of 92 markets, especially in urban areas

RentCafé, an apartment rental listing service that’s part of Yardi, said in a recent blog that it found larger apartments now under construction in 33 of the 92 markets in which it analyzed floor plans, with an average of 942 square feet compared with 894 square feet built in the past years in those cities.

Interesting, too, is that a lot of this construction appears aimed at keeping the city folks in the cities. Only seven of those 33 cities with expanding floor plans are in suburban areas. The rest are in the urbs, not the ‘burbs.

A good example is Chicago. RentCafé said that apartments under construction now in the Windy City proper have grown by 38 square feet on average to 838 square feet. Meanwhile, a suburb does lead the way in terms of space being added.

That would be Everett, Washington, a community about 25 miles north of Seattle where the average apartment under construction is 1,195 square feet, 267 more than five years ago. Both numbers are the highest among the 92 markets studied. The other two with apartments averaging more than 200 more square feet are another Seattle suburb, Kirkland, and the Phoenix suburb of Scottsdale, Arizona, at 211 and 208 more square feet, respectively.

The Millionacres bottom line

Adding more space appeals to a lot of people for a lot of reasons, including those who are choosing not to buy a house for reasons of mobility, not finances.

"The number of people that earn over $100,000 a year is significantly higher than it was 2 or 3 years ago. Those are renters, but obviously renters by choice because they can go out and buy a house," Daryl Spradley, senior vice president of Charles Wayne Consulting, says in the RentCafé blog.

Those are folks who can afford the higher rent needed to justify and sustain the investment in more space. They represent a market that real estate investors need to be aware of -- if they’re not part of it themselves -- as decisions are made on what to buy, what to build, and where.

That’s because even if you’re not investing in new construction, this trend will impact the appeal of existing rental property, too, of course, in varying degrees depending on the market. These are things to consider whether we’re talking about a direct investment or in the portfolio of a residential real estate investment trust (REIT).

Dawn of Roaring Twenties Seen as Dubai’s Luxury Home Sales Soar

(Source: finance.yahoo.com)  

Paul Abelsky and Nicolas Parasie
June 27, 2021·3 min read

2 / 2

Dawn of Roaring Twenties Seen as Dubai’s Luxury Home Sales Soar

(Bloomberg) -- A record burst of sales in the priciest corners of the global property market may be ushering in a post-pandemic era of exuberance in real estate -- with Dubai among the front-runners.

The Middle East business hub is the latest city to light up with what Knight Frank LLP called “a spectacular post-Covid rebound in luxury home sales.” In the first five months of the year, 22 properties worth more than $10 million found a buyer, the most since 2015 and up from a total of 19 last year.

Far from being an isolated hotspot, the emirate may mirror a pattern seen in other global cities, the consultancy firm said on Sunday. Homes in the wealthiest areas of London are selling at the fastest rate in seven years, according to LonRes data.

“The rebounding of Dubai’s super prime market echoes a wider global trend, signaling the start perhaps of a ‘Roaring Twenties’ for global real estate,” said Faisal Durrani, head of Middle East Research at Knight Frank.

“The uber luxury end of the market is a terrific barometer for general market sentiment,” Durrani said. “Homebuyers are clearly oozing with confidence when it comes to the emirate’s uber luxury homes market.”

Most of the transactions in the highest price bracket were on the city’s artificial island of Palm Jumeirah, with a total of about $770 million paid for properties in the $10 million range between January and May, according to Knight Frank.

Economic activity in Dubai, particularly tourism, has rebounded in the past six months as the emirate rolled out one of the world’s fastest vaccination campaigns and opened its doors to foreign visitors sooner than most other countries.

But even as luxury property appears to flourish in Dubai, other parts of the emirate’s real estate sector are struggling. State-linked developers Limitless and Meydan are restructuring debt, while one of the top realty firms, Damac Properties, sought to de-list its shares after posting hefty losses. The founder of Damac postponed the effort this month when the regulator started a review of the transaction.

Read more: Dubai Left Behind as World’s Prime Property Hotspots Thrive

And Dubai’s years-old property glut may also continue to put pressure on the value of high-end residential homes, Knight Frank recently warned.

Different Buyers

For all the similarities between major cities around the world, the differences are also telling.

It’s Brits who are driving the market in the wealthiest areas of London, with the portion of U.K. buyers currently at 62%, the highest in at least a decade, Knight Frank numbers show.

By contrast, Dubai -- where foreigners already account for about 90% of the population -- emerged as a haven while the most affluent home buyers fled virus lockdowns from Europe and elsewhere.

With much of the city’s real estate still working through an oversupply that drove down values by over a third since 2014, it may be a challenge to sustain demand for luxury homes while the United Arab Emirates, of which Dubai is a part, struggles to bring down the number of coronavirus infections that’s kept it on the U.K.’s red list.

Dubai has over 42,000 homes valued at $1 million or more, second only to London, according to Knight Frank. At the same time, prime residential properties are far more affordable in Dubai than in London, New York or Singapore.

“Investor sentiment has clearly been influenced by the way in which Dubai managed the impact of the pandemic,” said Durrani. “The world’s wealthy have their eyes firmly set on the city.”

Is Crypto Mainstream Now? Over 4/10 Investors Report Putting Money Into Cryptocurrency

(Source: gobankingrates.com)  

By Andrew LisaJune 26, 2021

From Elon Musk to Russian cybercriminals, it seems that every single day brings yet another sensational story involving cryptocurrency. To say that investors are catching on would be an understatement.

A new GOBankingRates poll of current investors reveals just how far into the mainstream cryptocurrency has moved. More than 40% of people with money in the stock market have already traded Bitcoin or one of the thousands of altcoin wannabes. Many, many more are interested but unable or unwilling to commit. The study dove into the subject in granular detail, exploring variables like age, investment level, and gender — and the results might surprise you.

The 999 interviewees who took part in the study came from all over the country. All were at least 18, but younger adults dominated the survey:

• 18-24: 23.92%
  
  
• 25-34: 23.22%
  
  
• 35-44: 27.33%
  
  
• 45-54: 12.41%
  
  
• 55-64: 6.91%
  
  
• 65+: 6.21%

Along gender lines, 57.26% of the study’s respondents were men and 42.74% were women. Most importantly, the survey screened out anyone who didn’t already have money invested in the stock market. The largest plurality, about 24%, have been in the market for five years or more and about 40% have been invested for at least a year. The biggest group, about one in five, had investments of $20,000 or more, but a majority had less than $5,000 in play.

Investors Are Very Likely to Be Invested in Crypto — Or Wish They Were

The big news to come out of the study was that more than four in 10 people invested in the stock market — 40.94% — are also investing in cryptocurrency. Only about 14% have no interest in crypto at all, but a whole bunch of potential crypto investors are riding the fence.

Almost one in four wish they could buy a stake in cryptocurrency, but don’t know enough about it to put money down. Another 16% don’t have the funds, but would invest if they did.

The survey’s participants were also asked how they would invest $1,000 if it were given to them for free — but they could only invest it one way. One in three said they would put it in stocks — not a particular shock considering all respondents were already invested in the market. What was surprising was the No. 2 selection — 16% said they’d put the whole thousand in Bitcoin or some other cryptocurrency. Although the question wasn’t asked, it can be reasonably inferred that people are more willing to take risks if they were playing with house money.

The Un-invested 60% Might Be Wise to Wait

Although it’s certainly impressive that more than 40% of investors have at least dabbled in crypto, that still leaves a full 60% who are still keeping their money off the crypto table.

Recent news provides some insight into their reluctance.

In early June, it came out that federal authorities had seized and recovered nearly all the cryptocurrency-based ransom that an American energy company had paid Russian cybercriminals who had hijacked a major pipeline. Bitcoin crashed below $32,000 on the news — it had been trading above $60,000 in April — but that was nothing new. Stomach-churning volatility and an endless cycle of bubble-crash-repeat has been par for the course since the early 2010s.

The moment also reinforced the perception of cryptocurrency as a sketchy mechanism of an underground economy outside the mainstream. Also, investors were forced once again to question the security and anonymity that has long been touted by crypto advocates. While it was good that foreign criminals were denied their ransom, how was the FBI able to find and seize the account so quickly if crypto is so secure, anonymous, and decentralized?

In the end, crypto is catching on — that fact is undeniable — but “mainstream” is still an adjective that’s just out of reach when debating cryptocurrency’s status as a legitimate investment.

Methodology: GOBankingRates surveyed 999 Americans aged 18 and older from across the country on May 10, 2021, asking six different questions: (1) Where are you currently investing and/or saving your money? Select all that apply; (2) Which of the following most closely matches your investing goals?; (3) If you received an extra $1,000, which ONE of the following do you think is the best way to invest it?; (4) Do any of the following statements about investing in cryptocurrencies apply to you? Select all that apply; (5) When did you first start investing your money in the stock market (not including retirement accounts like an IRA or 401k) and/or cryptocurrencies?; and (6) How much money do you currently have invested in stocks or cryptocurrency?. All respondents had to pass a screener question of: Are you currently investing/have money in the stock market?, with an answer of “Yes”. GOBankingRates used PureSpectrum’s survey platform to conduct the poll.

Markets with the Most Fortune 500 Headquarters

(Source: realpage.com)  

by Charlotte Wheeler Posted Jun 14, 2021

New York continues to rank as the nation’s top market for Fortune 500 headquarters. The nation’s 500 biggest revenue-generating businesses produce a total of $13.8 trillion in revenue, or roughly two-thirds of the nation’s economy, according to the recently released rankings for 2021. New York laid claim to the headquarters of 49 of these Fortune 500 companies, once again ranking as the nation’s top spot. The remainder of the 2021 rankings were also similar to 2020 numbers, with Chicago ranking as the #2 market, home to 36 Fortune 500 companies after gaining one top business this year. Two big Texas markets – Houston and Dallas – have 23 and 20 Fortune 500 headquarters, respectively. San Jose ranked #5 with 19 Fortune 500 companies, followed by Washington, DC with 17 companies. Both those markets had the same number of Fortune 500 headquarters in 2021 as they did in 2020. Minneapolis and Atlanta tied for the #7 spot, both with 16 Fortune 500 headquarters. Boston gained one Fortune 500 headquarters in 2021, taking the total to 15. Newark, Philadelphia and San Francisco tied for the #10 spot, each with 13 Fortune 500 headquarters.

Check Out the Top 10 Buyer Priorities in a House

(Source: magazine.realtor) 

June 17, 2021

Extra space for extended family and pets and a home office have risen to the top of wishlists among house hunters. And that desire for more space is driving many home buyers’ decision to purchase a new home in the coming year, according to a new realtor.com® survey of 1,200 home shoppers.

Also, the eagerness for greater outdoor space is prompting terms like “fenced yard,” “acres,” “backyard,” “front porch,” “garage,” and “three-car garage” to see an increase in realtor.com® searches over the past year. Since more households became pet owners during the pandemic, the term “pet friendly” has also significantly increased in searches.

“The COVID pandemic ushered in a new way of thinking about what home means, and that is influencing much of what today’s home shoppers are looking for,” says George Raitu, realtor.com®’s senior economist. “Garages, large backyards, and space for pets always rank high on buyers’ wish lists, but those features have grown in importance. The survey results highlight that the pandemic has elevated our relationship with family as well as the need for our home to serve multiple purposes, especially the ability to work remotely. As a result, we are placing a premium on the need to accommodate extended family, and features like a home office and broadband internet.”

Buyers reported that the following 10 home features have become a priority as a result of the pandemic:

• Quiet location: 28%
• Updated kitchen: 25%
• Garage: 24%
• Large backyard: 24%
• Outdoor living area: 20%
• Space for pets: 18%
• Updated bathrooms: 19%
• Home office: 17%
• Broadband internet capabilities: 17%
• Open floor plan: 16%

What’s more, 65% of buyers surveyed said they were considering their extended family when they shopped for a home. Nearly a quarter said they planned to buy near family members. One-fifth of respondents said they would have extended family living with them full-time. Thirty percent said their new home would need to accommodate extended family staying with them part-time or visiting.

On the other hand, some home items have seen a decrease in importance since the pandemic—notably the need for a short commute time. Also, a home with smaller square footage is also in less demand since the pandemic, the survey showed.

“Remodeled” homes dropped 88% year-to-date through May. “It appears that motivated buyers are making concessions in their home search” as home prices rise, the report notes. Fewer searches are occurring for otherwise popular features such as granite countertops (down 58%), theater/media rooms (down 65%), and bars (down 52%).

Buyers may be getting more realistic heading into the housing market, knowing that they might not be able to get everything on their wish list. When they were asked to select which features they’d be willing to sacrifice if they had to reduce their budget, the following home amenities would be among the first to go:

• Pool/spa: 24%
• Man cave: 24%
• Guest house: 23%
• Mother-in-law suite: 23%
• New construction: 22%
• Solar panels: 21%
• Finished basement: 20%
• Home office: 18%
• Large backyard: 17%
• Guest room: 17%

Cities With the Biggest Spike in Homeownership

(Source: magazine.realtor)  

June 15, 2021

The pandemic has undeniably fueled interest in real estate and homeownership. Some metro areas have seen a bigger rise than others.

“The pandemic drove increased home buying interest in the types of livable communities that offer home buyers good value for their money and a decent number of homes to choose from,” says Danielle Hale, realtor.com®’s chief economist. “Some markets like Albany, Sacramento, and Buffalo clearly benefited from an influx of people leaving big cities like New York and San Francisco, but many other markets are just good places to live that benefited from increased home buyer motivation thanks to low mortgage rates and a lot of time spent at home over the last year.”

Realtor.com®’s research team identified the metro areas with the largest increases in homeownership during the pandemic. They compared homeownership rates in the fourth quarter of 2020 (October through December) to the first quarter of 2021 (January through March). The metro areas listed include the surrounding towns, suburbs, and smaller urban areas, realtor.com® notes.

The following areas saw homeownership rise the most during that period:

1. Albany, N.Y.

• Percentage homeownership change: 9%

2. Baton Rouge, La.

• Percentage homeownership change: 8.45%

3. Columbia, S.C.

• Percentage homeownership change: 7.3%

4. North Port, Fla.

• Percentage homeownership increase: 7.3%

5. Virginia Beach, Va.

• Percentage homeownership change: 5.95%

6. Sacramento, Calif.

• Percentage homeownership change: 5.3%

7. Providence, R.I.

• Percentage homeownership change: 5%

8. Indianapolis

• Percentage homeownership change: 4.9%

9. Cincinnati

• Percentage homeownership change: 4.65%

10. Buffalo, N.Y.

• Percentage homeownership change: 4.5%

Hong Kong housing prices race toward record highs

(Source: therealdeal.com)  

World’s least-affordable market shows no signs of slowing down

June 26, 2021 09:00 AM | TRD Staff

A rendering of Pavilia Farm III and CK Asset Holdings chair Victor Li Tzar-kuoi (The Pavilia Farm 360, Getty)

Pandemic homebuyers have been met with record-high prices, few options and fierce competition. Now the world’s least affordable housing market, Hong Kong, is set to break its historical ceiling, Bloomberg News reported.

In the densely-packed city of 7.5 million people, demand remains high, despite a troubled economy and the looming specter of a mass emigration spurred by political turmoil. Buyers have flooded the market for luxury apartments: Recently, 88 vied for a single unit at New World Development’s Pavilia Farm III.

Buying isn’t much easier elsewhere in the city, as secondary market transactions in Hong Kong’s 10 biggest housing developments are expected to reach a 23-year high, according to Centaline Property Agency.

With low interest rates fueling a global rush to buy, Hong Kong’s success isn’t without its obstacles. The British Nationals Overseas visa program, which grants certain Hong Kong residents the ability to move to the U.K., received 34,000 applications in the first quarter of 2021, the U.K. Home Office told Bloomberg News.

As mass protests engulfed the city in 2019 over China’s push to exert greater control over Hong Kong’s government, residents of the former British territory still could leave, potentially hurting the housing market.

Yet experts aren’t concerned. Any potential migration isn’t enough to offset the “severe supply-demand imbalance” in Hong Kong’s housing market, Nelson Wong, head of research at Jones Lang LaSalle in Greater China, told Bloomberg. In fact, Hong Kong is so starved for space that it plans to spend $80 billion, roughly half its fiscal reserves, to build artificial islands off Lantau Island.

Only 52 percent of Hong Kong residents actually own their apartments, a disparity that troubles Beijing, which considers high property prices a root cause of social discontent, according to the publication.

In response, Hong Kong’s government has seized more land in the New Territories to build housing and made it easier to obtain a home loan. It is even reportedly considering a vacancy tax on new, unsold homes to help fill “ghost units” at the Dragon Lodge mansion, which sit vacant despite premium views.

Buyers from mainland China are also keeping demand high, accounting for 11.2 percent of purchases by value in the first four months of the year. Shares of Hong Kong’s four largest developers are all up in 2021, with shares of CK Asset Holdings, which recently broke the record for priciest apartment sale in Asia, up 32 percent from last year.

[Bloomberg News] — Joe Lovinger

24% of Home Sellers Expect to Get More Than Their Asking Price

(Source:  fool.com)  

by Maurie Backman | June 28, 2021

It's a seller's market -- and those who list their homes have the potential to make a lot of money.

Right now may not be a good time to buy a home. Though mortgage rates are very competitive, home prices are extremely inflated because there's not a lot of inventory to go around.

But while today's real estate market may be challenging for buyers, it's great for sellers. In fact,

53% of sellers expect that they'll get their asking price once they put a home on the market, according to a recent survey by Realtor.com. Meanwhile, 24% expect to get above their asking price.

Why are homes selling above asking prices?

In a normal housing market, you might find the occasional bidding war, where two or more buyers duke it out over the same home, all the while raising its sale price in the process. But in today's housing market, record low inventory is making bidding wars more of a mainstay. In fact, around 20% of sellers expect their home to wind up in a bidding war.

Not only are bidding wars driving home prices up, but many potential buyers choose to make an offer on a house that is above the seller's asking price in an attempt to avoid a bidding war. And if you've been having a hard time getting an offer accepted, that's a tactic you may want to try out, too.

Imagine a home is listed for $300,000. In a bidding war, that home price could eventually be driven up to $350,000 if competing buyers keep raising their offers by $5,000 or $10,000 increments in an effort to win.

Now, let's say you're interested in that $300,000 home, and you decide to make an initial offer of $320,000, or $20,000 over asking price. The seller may be so happy with that offer that they decide to accept it on the spot and put the home under contract. That could, in turn, save you money on that home -- even if you do end up paying more than what the home is listed for.

In fact, some sellers in today's market may be slightly underpricing their homes in an effort to drive a bidding war. But again, coming in with an offer above asking price could work to your benefit as a buyer.

How much should you offer on a home?

Making an offer above a home's asking price could lead to a contract. But be careful -- you don't want to go overboard.

First of all, the higher a price you pay for your home, the higher your mortgage payments will be. Also, if the home you're buying doesn't appraise for its sale price, you may not be able to get the mortgage you need to finance that home.

In today's red-hot housing market, sellers clearly have the upper hand, and their confidence is evident. Making an offer above asking price could help keep the home you want out of a bidding war. And that could, in turn, save you not only a lot of money, but a world of stress.

Cryptocurrency jokes get serious

(Source: axios.com)  

Jul 9, 2021 

The cryptocurrency market is becoming one of the few places where internet meme culture can translate into serious money.

The big picture: "Joke" cryptocurrencies can thrive when bored people who have cash to spare look for new ways to entertain themselves with seemingly benign bets — hoping that one of those bets could turn into a lucrative investment.

Catch up quick: A meme coin or token is a cryptocurrency inspired by internet memes, jokes, notable personalities and existing cryptocurrencies. They are typically worth fractions of a penny, and have no utility.

The market cap of meme coins and tokens is now about $33 billion, according to CoinMarketCap.

• Dogecoin, the most valuable of the meme coins with a $27 billion market cap, is just one of possibly thousands of meme cryptos that have been created since around 2011.

Yes, but: 90%-95% of jokes coins end up dead, according to dead-coin tracker Coinopsy.

State of play: Launching new cryptocurrencies has become easier over the past few years, making it possible for someone to do so without expensive equipment or technical knowledge — sometimes in less than an hour.

How it works: Many joke cryptos are available to trade on exchanges like Gate.io and PancakeSwap.

• Dogecoin was created in 2013 and features the Shiba Inu dog from the "Doge" meme as its logo. But it didn't soar in value until earlier this year, when it became a target for the Reddit crowd.
  
  
• Other joke and meme cryptos have monikers like Loser Coin and Sad Cat Token. Both of those are worth fractions of a penny, and combined, are held by more than 100,000 addresses.

What they’re saying: Outside of crypto, there aren't that many real-world examples of literal jokes that turn into something of monetary value, says Guan Yang, a data scientist who launched Stalwartbucks as an inside joke with journalist Joe Weisenthal in 2014.

• Like baseball cards or NFTs, joke currencies can be viewed as collectibles, Yang says. When enough people are interested in them, and assign them monetary value, they morph into an asset class.
  
  
• “We have a craving to do that with almost anything," he says.

Sushi Nooz Special: SINGULARITY MINDS Part 3

SINGULARITY MINDS

Part 3

Author: Sushi Nooz

July 12, 2021 

Here's the link to Part 1.
Here's the link to Part 2.

1. AI can predict when someone will die with unsettling accuracy
   
   
2. Physicists developed an experimental quantum device to predict the future
   
   
3. New Quantum Device Can “Generate All Possible Futures”
   
   
4. Artificial intelligence singles out neurons faster than a human can
   
   
5. Astounding AI Guesses What You Look Like Based on Your Voice
   
   
6. MIT algorithm helps robots guess where humans are going next | Engadget
   
   
7. The first AI capable of simulating the universe works so well it’s scary
   
   
8. AI's Minority Report for retail: They know you’ll return it even before you buy it | ZDNet
   
   
9. Deep learning algorithm solves Rubik's Cube faster than any human: Work is step toward advanced AI systems that can think, reason, plan and make decisions -- ScienceDaily
   
   
10. Robot, heal thyself: scientists develop self-repairing machines | Robots | The Guardian
    
    
11. U.S. Army's A.I. Missiles Will Not Stop, Ever, Until They Hit Their Target | Digital Trends
    
    
12. Researchers tout AI that can predict 25 video frames into the future | VentureBeat
    
    
13. MIT CSAIL's AI can reconstruct hidden movement from video footage alone | VentureBeat
    
    
14. 3D-printed bunny contains DNA instructions to make a copy of itself | New Scientist
    
    
15. Model beats Wall Street analysts in forecasting business financials
    
    
16. Computers Are Learning to See in Higher Dimensions | WIRED
    
    
17. Scientists Create “Living Concrete” That Can Heal Itself
    
    
18. Spider-Man-style robotic graspers defy gravity
    
    
19. An AI trained to spot hidden objects can see through camouflage | New Scientist

NYC’s office sublease surge slows as tenants move to reoccupy space

(Source: therealdeal.com) 

Over 1 million sq ft of space has been withdrawn from the Manhattan market since February

June 14, 2021 07:00 AM
By Akiko Matsuda

Apparel sales are surging. Subway ridership is at a 15-month high. Lines of customers are forming at Midtown salad shops during the lunch rush. For better or worse, New York City’s office workers are slowly returning to workplaces long abandoned.

The city’s office market, battered during the pandemic, is similarly showing signs of a rebound, with companies yanking their spaces off the sublease market in anticipation of an earlier than expected return to the workplace.

Rent the Runway, which rents out designer dresses and accessories to subscribers, recently pulled its 83,000-square-foot Dumbo office from the sublease market, where it had sat since September.

“The decision was made, as their business has picked up, to go back and reoccupy the space,” said Ira Schuman, a Savills broker who handled the sublease listing, adding that Rent the Runway is one of dozens of companies that have recently decided to reoccupy space.

More than 15 million square feet of sublet inventory has been dumped on Manhattan’s office market since the beginning of the pandemic, according to JLL, as stricken businesses aimed to cut overhead costs.

Even companies that were not financially devastated by the health crisis — such as JPMorgan Chase, which placed 700,000 square feet of Lower Manhattan office space on the sublease market in March — jumped on the bandwagon, hoping to save some money by backfilling extra office space that they may not need.

But the surge of sublease additions slowed in the first quarter of 2021 as more Americans got vaccinated and infection levels tumbled.

In Midtown South, 880,000 square feet of sublease space was added in the fourth quarter of 2020, according to Newmark. Just shy of 300,000 square feet was added in the first quarter of this year.

“The combination of the optimism around the vaccine and what I call the parting of the clouds a little bit sooner” has made some firms realize they may actually need space they had previously considered forgoing, said JLL Vice Chair Cynthia Wasserberger.

A new report Wasserberger authored lists a sample of 16 such tenants across different industries — including Compass, First Republic Bank and the ad agency WPP — that have recently delisted a total of 590,000 square feet of space placed on the market since the start of the pandemic.

Last summer, educational publisher McGraw Hill listed its 130,000-square-foot space at Paramount Group’s 1325 Sixth Avenue for subleasing to “evaluate our physical footprint,” the company said in January. But the firm recently withdrew a 100,000-square-foot portion of the listing, as it’s now considering plans to welcome its employees back this year. Zillow Group, SalesForce and Buzzfeed have recently made similar moves, according to a report by Savills.

On average, sublets are offered for about 25 percent less than direct leases, and average sublet asking rents decreased a further 4.9 percent in the first quarter compared to a year ago, according to Danny Mangru, Savills’ research director for New York and the Tri-State region.

Savvy tenants have taken advantage of the discount by grabbing some of the better spaces available. Noom, a weight-loss app developer, inked a 113,000-square-foot sublease to take over most of ad agency R/GA’s space at Brookfield Property Partners’ 5 Manhattan West.

Some companies may be withdrawing their sublease listings after realizing that they’re not going to save as much money as they once hoped in a market flooded with competition, said Michael Colacino, president of the online commercial brokerage SquareFoot.

“As people find that the price that they want is not being met, their expectations get revised,” Colacino said. If office tenants wanted to sublet their space but find no takers unless they give a deep discount, he said, they may conclude that “it’s really better to just hang on to it.”