U.S. Population Shifts

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People were on the move in 2012 and apparently the most popular place for them to move to was Pittsburgh, PA., according to the 2012 Top US Growth Cities Report recently released by U-Haul International.  The Steel City topped the list of 30 metro areas selected with a 9.04% population growth, based on data collected by U-Haul from over 1.6 million one-way truck rentals during a recent 12 month period.

The cities chosen for the list had more than 5,000 families moving in or out of the area during that time.   “Growth cities were then determined by calculating the percentage of inbound moves vs. outbound moves for each area,” said John Taylor, president of U-Haul International, Inc.   Other cities in the U-Haul top 10 included:
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Tennessee Foreclosures Down

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In Shelby County, there were 1,030 total foreclosures in the first quarter this year, according to real estate information company Chandler Reports.  That’s down from 1,252 foreclosures during the same period in 2012 – a drop of 17%.  Pull back one year before that, though, and the number of foreclosures had spiked to 1,235 in the first quarter of 2012 compared to 964 in the first quarter of 2011. At this time last year, in other words, the area was in the midst of a 30% gain in foreclosures.  Pointing to the recent drop, some local brokers and Realtors say a combination of forces is at work. There’s been a small improvement in the economy, which helps. Banks also are increasingly pursuing workouts, loan modifications and short sales.

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Phoenix is Facing a Housing Shortage

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A Phoenix home with 95 bids is just one example of a housing market entering a new and unprecedented phase.  Experts at Arizona State University School of Business say Phoenix is headed for a major housing shortage.

Long gone are the days when Phoenix was riddled with available, well-built single-family homes in the wake of the 2008 housing market bust.

Five years after the crash, the desert metro is facing lagging home construction, predictions of population growth and rising land prices, according to real estate experts with ASU.

The end result could be a significant housing shortage in the near future, experts contend.

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An Investor-Driven Recovery

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An Investor-Driven Home RecoveryInvestors are buying homes at a more rapid pace than ever before, and this time their investments actually make sense.  Most are buying homes below replacement cost, or at prices that allow for a reasonable rental return.

Across the 167 metro areas we analyzed, investor activity rose to 29.6% of all transactions in the first quarter of this year, up from the trough of 23.6% in Q4 2009.  Our research leads us to believe Q2 activity exceeds Q1, and since last quarter, investor activity has already spiked 2%!

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Analyze Your Market Using the MAD Method

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There are many complicated ways to analyze the market conditions in your local area, enough to confuse and boggle the novice investor’s mind.  However, you can keep things simple by using our “MAD” method.  This means paying attention to three important factors and noting whether they’re going up or down:

M — Median housing prices

A — Active listings on the market

D — Days on the market

By paying attention to these three simple factors, you’ll get a good snapshot of the state of your local market.

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