Daniel Mandel, MBA’s Post

“Housing experts say there just aren't enough homes in the U.S.” According to the NPR article posted in the comments below 👇, the U.S. is facing a massive shortage of homes, estimated between 4 and 7 million units. 1. Affordability Crisis: This shortage has significantly increased housing costs, making it difficult for renters and buyers to find affordable homes. 2. Impact on Renters: Rents have risen rapidly, with median rents reaching about $1,400 monthly. For the first time, half of all renters are spending 30% or more of their income on rent. 3. Challenges for Buyers: Prospective homebuyers face difficulties due to high mortgage rates, stricter lending standards, and a lack of starter homes. 4. Root Cause: Restrictive zoning is the primary culprit for the housing shortage, making it difficult to build homes in areas with job opportunities. 5. Successful Reforms: Some cities, like Minneapolis, have successfully updated their zoning laws to allow for more housing construction, particularly apartments near commerce and transit. 6. Potential Solutions: Reducing minimum lot sizes and parking requirements and streamlining permitting processes have shown positive results in some areas. 7. Future Outlook: Despite current challenges, there's optimism due to increasing state and local actions to legalize lower-cost homes and reduce barriers to housing construction. 💡 Have you seen other municipalities implementing positive changes to encourage more housing? What are these initiatives and where are they being implemented? Share your thoughts in the comments below 👇! Please like 👍, comment below 👇, or share 👉. Click the 🔔 in my profile to get notified of my posts. And follow me for more content like this.

“The Build-to-Rent Housing Boom: New Single-Family Rentals Reach All-Time High, With Another 45,000 on the Way” The RentCafe.com article posted in the comments below 👇 highlights the significant growth in the build-to-rent (BTR) housing sector in the US. 1. Record-breaking growth: 2023 saw an all-time high of 27,500 BTR homes completed, a 75% increase from 2022 and triple the number in 2021. 2. Leading markets: Phoenix, Dallas, and Atlanta were the top three metros for BTR construction in 2023, accounting for nearly one-third of all new units. 3. Future projections: Over 45,400 BTR houses are currently under construction, indicating continued growth in the sector. 4. Driving factors: The rise in BTR homes is attributed to hybrid work arrangements, millennials reaching prime nesting years, and challenges in homebuying affordability. 5. Geographic expansion: While traditionally strong in the Southwest, BTR communities are now expanding into Florida, California, and even the Midwest. 6. State leadership: Texas led BTR development in 2023 with nearly 4,800 houses completed, followed by Arizona, Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina. 7. Market share: BTR homes accounted for about 7.9% of all single-family home starts in 2023, indicating it's still a niche but growing segment. 💡 How is your company leveraging the Build-to-Rent (BTR) boom to drive growth and profitability? Share your thoughts in the comments below 👇! Please like 👍, comment below 👇, or share 👉. Click the 🔔 in my profile to get notified of my posts. And follow me for more content like this.

“Move Aside, Big Banks: Giant Funds Now Rule Wall Street - Asset managers are growing into huge and complex financial supermarkets that mint billionaires by the dozen” The Wall Street Journal article discusses how giant investment funds are now dominating Wall Street, challenging the traditional dominance of big banks. 1. Asset managers control twice as many assets as US banks, shaping the economy. 2. Top investment firms like Blackstone, Franklin Templeton, BlackRock, and KKR are expanding into new business areas, blurring traditional Wall Street roles. 3. These firms are evolving into financial supermarkets, offering a wide range of products to institutions, wealthy individuals, and increasingly, middle-class investors. 4. Private equity and debt funds doubled to $6 trillion in four years. 5. Private equity's expansion is creating billionaires at an unmatched rate. 6. Traditional asset managers are creating private-fund operations to increase profits. 7. Regulators eye new rules for private funds and large managers as systemically important institutions. 8. Investment giants' growth sparks market risk concerns and calls for investor education. This shift reshapes finance, affecting markets, wealth, and regulation. 💡 What excites and scares you about the rise of private equity? Share your thoughts in the comments below 👇! Please like 👍, comment below 👇, or share 👉. Click the 🔔 in my profile to get notified of my posts. And follow me for more content like this.

“The Cost of Title Insurance on Homes Is Out of Sync With the Risk - Biden administration seeks to waive requirement on certain mortgage refinancings” The Wall Street Journal article posted in the comments below 👇 highlights the high cost of title insurance for homeowners refinancing despite low risk and infrequent claims. 1. Homeowners pay high premiums for title insurance on refinancing, but claims are rare, with payouts at only 3% of premiums. 2. Fannie Mae pilot waives some title insurance, saving borrowers $500-$1,500. 3. The Biden administration aims to cut title insurance costs, and the Treasury plans a roundtable discussion. 4. Insurers resist the program, claiming fees cover risk, review, and defect fixes. 5. Some firms, like Doma, offer cheaper, lower-risk algorithmic title insurance. 💡What solutions can prevent claims on title while reducing costs for owners? Share your thoughts in the comments below 👇! Please like 👍, comment below 👇, or share 👉. Click the 🔔 in my profile to get notified of my posts. And follow me for more content like this.

“Evictions Surge in Major Cities in the American Sunbelt - Notices in Houston, Las Vegas and Phoenix remain at elevated levels, even as they have fallen elsewhere” Eviction filings have increased by 35% or more in Sunbelt cities like Las Vegas, Houston, and Phoenix, with Phoenix seeing over 8,000 filings in January, a record for Maricopa County. According to The Wall Street Journal article posted in the comments below 👇, the surge is attributed to several factors: 1. Sharp rent increases: Nationwide, asking rents rose 30% from 2020 to 2023. 2. Reduced rental assistance: Emergency funds have dwindled, exposing financial strain. 3. Automation: Property management software is streamlining the eviction process. Low-income renters face a housing crisis, with many forced into unaffordable leases. This has led to a 40% increase in eviction-related GoFundMe campaigns since pre-pandemic times. Eviction surge reveals U.S. housing crisis, hitting Sunbelt's low-income renters hardest. 💡 Landlords, how are you managing the increasing challenges of bad debt and evictions? Share your thoughts in the comments below 👇! Please like 👍, comment below 👇, or share 👉. Click the 🔔 in my profile to get notified of my posts. And follow me for more content like this.

“Biden Calls for National Rent Caps on Corporate Landlords - The White House proposal would limit rent increases to 5% for millions of tenants nationwide. But Congress is unlikely to act.” President Biden has proposed a national rent control plan targeting corporate landlords to address rising housing costs. In the comments below 👇 is a Bloomberg article and the fact sheet from the White House. 1. Landlords with 50+ units must cap rent hikes at 5% or forfeit depreciation. 2. The plan would impact about 20 million apartment units nationwide. 3. New construction and substantial renovations would be exempt from these restrictions. 4. The proposal is part of a broader effort to lower housing costs, including repurposing public land for affordable housing and offering grants for development. However, the plan faces significant challenges: 1. Congressional approval is unlikely due to current political climate and election focus. 2. Industry groups oppose the plan, claiming it could hinder development and harm the housing market. 3. Most experts doubt rent control's effectiveness in solving housing affordability. The debate reveals housing affordability's complexity and diverse viewpoints. 💡 What practical reforms would you advocate to help alleviate the cost of housing? Share your thoughts in the comments below 👇! Please like 👍, comment below 👇, or share 👉. Click the 🔔 in my profile to get notified of my posts. And follow me for more content like this.

“Biden to Require Tenant Protections for Federally Backed Mortgages - Landlords with mortages backed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac would be required to give notice on lease changes. But advocates are asking for more.” The Bloomberg article in the comments below 👇 covers new tenant protection measures by the Biden administration for properties with federally backed mortgages. 1. New Policy: From February 2025, landlords with new or refinanced Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac mortgages must give 30 days' notice for rent increases or lease terminations. 2. Scope: Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac back 58% of new apartment loans, affecting over 16 million renters. 3. Additional Protections: The policy mandates a 5-day grace period for late rent. 4. Context: The policy is part of Biden's broader agenda to support renters, including a 10% rent increase cap for Low Income Housing Tax Credit properties. 5. Mixed Reception: Tenant advocates view this as a first step but argue for stronger measures like rent control. Industry leaders worry about overregulation. 6. Future Implications: This policy increases federal involvement in housing, potentially linking federal financing to tenant protections. The article underscores the tension between tenant rights and market dynamics in addressing attainable housing. 💡 What impact will these changes have on the capital markets? Share your thoughts in the comments below 👇! Please like 👍, comment below 👇, or share 👉. Click the 🔔 in my profile to get notified of my posts. And follow me for more content like this.

“A Huge Number of Homeowners Have Mortgage Rates Too Good to Give Up- On a scale not seen in decades, many Americans are stuck in homes they would rather leave.” The New York Times article posted in the comments below 👇 discusses how low fixed-rate mortgages "lock in" homeowners, causing 1.3M fewer sales in 2022-23, impacting housing and the economy. In a normal year, there are 5 million housing sales so 25% fewer sales is significant. 1. Existing mortgages average 3.2% lower than new loans. 2. 70% of mortgages 3%+ points below market by late 2023 is unprecedented. 3. This lock-in effect hinders relocations and housing adjustments. 4. Locked-in rates are worth $50,000 per mortgage, or $511 monthly. 5. The situation limits labor mobility, affecting wages and hiring. 6. Unlike post-2008, this issue may last longer due to 30-year fixed-rate mortgages. 7. Biden proposes $10,000 tax credits for new buyers and sellers, equating to a 1.5% rate cut for two years on median homes, but may not outweigh low-rate mortgage benefits. 💡 What solutions do you propose to address the lock-in effect? Share your thoughts in the comments below 👇! Please like 👍, comment below 👇, or share 👉. Click the 🔔 in my profile to get notified of my posts. And follow me for more content like this.

“Property Fraud Allegations Snowball as Commercial Real-Estate Values Fall Drop in values caused by higher interest rates and a rise in defaults exposes more schemes” The Wall Street Journal article posted in the comments below 👇 discusses the rise of property fraud claims as real estate values fall amid rate hikes. 1. Fraud patterns: Falsified loan data surged with property prices from mid-2010s to 2021. 2. Exposure of schemes: Property value drops expose fraud, worsening the troubled real estate market. 3. Lender practices: Lenders often skip audits, accepting given building values to save costs. 4. Federal response: Prosecutors and the Federal Housing Finance Agency Inspector General are intensifying anti-fraud efforts. 5. Government-backed enterprises: Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac tighten rules and ban brokers to curb rental lending abuses. 6. Underwriting issues: Lenders rely on borrowers' unaudited financials for commercial mortgages. 7. Widespread impact: A study of 39,000+ commercial mortgages found nearly one-third had inflated building profits by at least 5%. 8. Conflicts of interest: Landlords inflate profits for bigger loans. Lenders often accept this, especially when reselling loans, as it increases fees. What strategies do you recommend to prevent fraud in commercial real estate lending? Share your thoughts in the comments below 👇! Please like 👍, comment below 👇, or share 👉. Click the 🔔 in my profile to get notified of my posts. And follow me for more content like this.

“What’s Next for the U.S. Build-to-Rent Industry?” Overall, the build-to-rent (”BTR”) industry is poised for continued growth, offering a unique housing solution that bridges the gap between traditional apartments and homeownership. Here are the highlights from these interviews with the Urban Land Institute posted in the comments below 👇. 1. BTR gains popularity as an affordable alternative to traditional homeownership. 2. BTR communities offer apartment-style units, single-family homes, or both. 3. BTR amenities are modest; in single-family BTRs, the house is the main amenity. 4. BTR tenants stay longer, averaging over 4 years compared to 15 months for apartment renters. 5. BTR construction costs match for-sale homes, but streamlined processes offer cost savings. 6. Stabilized BTR communities are valued similarly to multifamily properties by lenders and investors. 7. Interest is growing in larger, diverse BTR communities with multiple housing types. 8. BTR faces public perception challenges due to concerns about rental properties' impact on neighborhood values. 9. Experts predict BTR sector growth, with a potential 2024 rebound following a possible 2023 slowdown. 💡 What aspect of the future of BTR excites you the most? Share your thoughts in the comments below 👇! Please like 👍, comment below 👇, or share 👉. Click the 🔔 in my profile to get notified of my posts. And follow me for more content like this.