Real Estate News: Real Estate Investing Podcast

The tiny home trend is growing, along with the size of the tiny homes. The movement started off as a money-saving, do-it-yourself, minimalist lifestyle, but has since flourished as a way to downsize into more efficient but luxurious surroundings. www.NewsForInvestors.com

Texas is cleaning up its image as one of the states with the highest property taxes. Lawmakers passed a reform measure that will slow the growth of property tax increases, by lowering the amount that districts can raise property taxes each year. This is great news for homeowners and investors with property in Texas. www.NewsForInvestors.com

In this week's Real Estate News Brief... what’s up with the Fed rate cut plan, where buyers are finding affordable homes, and what burglars do to break in to your home. We begin with economic news from this past week, and new signs that the Fed will lower interest rates at the next meeting. Fed Chief Jerome Powell offered two days of testimony to Congress about the state of the economy, saying that trade tensions have increased and the global economy has weakened. www.NewsForInvestors.com

Storms and fires appear to be more threatening. New reports say that more and more people are in harm’s way because of population growth in high-risk areas. That’s lead to many scary headlines and concerns about potential damage from hurricanes, tornados, flooding, and wildfires. But don’t let that derail your portfolio plans. Being aware of the risks is just the first step in the due diligence you need to do as a real estate investor. www.NewsForInvestors.com

There’s a new loan option for homes don’t meet the “livability” requirement for traditional financing. Freddie Mac recently launched the ChoiceRenovation mortgage to help finance home renovations without a second loan. It’s similar to the Fannie Mae HomeStyle loan with several new features including financing for the construction of a “mother-in-law” unit, and disaster protection upgrades. www.NewsForInvestors.com

Robots are working their way into our lives, and taking over our jobs. A comprehensive new report out of Oxford Economics looks at the rise of the robotic workplace, and the impact it will have on the job market and productivity. This is a worldwide phenomenon, and one that will transform many industries, including real estate. www.NewsForInvestors.com

In this week's Real Estate News Brief... what economists expect from the next Fed meeting, how much homeowners can save by refinancing, and why smart home devices could compromise your internet security. www.NewsForInvestors.com

Flying taxis are about to make their debut, and reinvent our concept of urban transport. Uber says it plans to launch its Uber Air service three years from now, in 2023. Uber says it will begin the roll-out in two U.S. cities, and a third international location. www.NewsForInvestors.com

Zillow unveiled a new version of its Zestimate home valuation tool that’s supposed to be much more accurate than previous versions. Zillow claims the error rate is now less than 2% thanks to the ideas it collected in a $1-million contest to make the Zestimate smarter. It’s now claiming to have the most accurate home valuation tool, although it does face stiff competition from Redfin, and others. www.NewsForInvestors.com

In this week's Real Estate News Brief... the billionaires who support a wealth tax, bank stress test results, and escrow account refunds for California mortgage holders. We begin with economic news from this past week. New home sales hit a 5-month low in May. The Commerce Department says they were down 7.8% compared to April and ran at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 646,000. MarketWatch economists had expected a faster pace of 669,000. www.NewsForInvestors.com

The nation may have more than one reason to celebrate this 4th of July. Barring any unforeseen economic upheaval in the days ahead, the beginning of July will mark the longest economic expansion in U.S. history. But that doesn’t mean it’s the largest expansion we’ve ever seen. It only means it’s the “longest.” www.NewsForInvestors.com

A recent Supreme Court ruling is being hailed as a “win” for private property rights. It is also shaking up the legal community because it overturns a legal precedent that’s been used for other cases, and weakens the whole idea of a “legal precedent.” www.NewsForInvestors.com

In this week's Real Estate News in Brief… a decision on interest rates, the best tech cities, and a growing retirement savings gap. We begin with economic news from this past week, and a Federal Reserve decision to leave short-term interest rates unchanged. It said in a statement that the economy continues to expand at a “moderate” pace and the labor market “remains strong.” There are signs the economy is faltering however, including lower inflation rates.

Home sales are hot for master-planned communities that have Crystal Lagoons. These man-made lakes create a beach-style environment on property miles from the ocean. There are just a hand-full of them in the U.S. right now, but their popularity is growing fast. According to a new report from RCLCO, the sales volume for homes in Crystal Lagoon communities is experiencing a year-over-year increase of almost 350%. www.NewsForInvestors.com

A North Carolina start-up is set to disrupt the world of architectural design. Higharc says it is developing software that will make it easy for anyone to create the home of their dreams without the help or expense of an architect. The program will give users the ability to combine and recombine ideas as they morph from one 3D image to another. When the desired result is achieved, the program will print ready-to-use 3D construction plans that conform to local codes. www.NewsForInvestors.com