Return on Rent: In Most Major Markets, Most Homes Can Be Rented Out for A Profit
Mom-and-pop real estate investors looking to buy a home and rent it out for a profit essentially can’t go wrong purchasing a large majority of homes in most major markets nationwide – except for a handful of metros largely clustered along the West Coast and Northeast.
April 2017 Market Report: A Decade Later, Home Values Return to Bubble-Era Peak
Some people will ask whether passing the 2007 peak means the housing market is in another bubble. It's not. In most markets during "normal times," home values typically rise over time to some degree, and absent any large shocks, each month will represent a new peak. The fact that it took the Zillow Home Value Index a decade to return to this point, let alone exceed it, is a testament to how far the market fell when it crashed. It's also a reflection of how outlandishly high it had climbed.
Transfer Taxes: A Rude Surprise for Some Home Sellers
These taxes are a commonly overlooked hidden cost to selling, and they vary considerably across markets. For example, transfer taxes on a median-valued home in Chicago total $2,501. If you live just outside the city limits, they're only $313.
March 2017 Market Report: Rents Rise at Slowest Pace in Five Years
U.S. rents rose 0.7 percent over the past year, to a Zillow Rent Index (ZRI) of $1,408 per month, the slowest rate of appreciation since November 2012.
February 2017 Market Report: Inventory Still Low as Home Shopping Season Begins
Median U.S. home values rose 6.9 percent in February compared to a year ago, the 55th consecutive month of annual home value growth and the 18th month in a row in which annual appreciation exceeded 5 percent, according to the February Zillow Real Estate Market Report.
Live, Work and Play: Where to Maximize Take-Home Pay and Job Opportunities
Where we live has an enormous influence on how we balance the competing demands of living, working and playing. We all (well, most of us) need to work, and communities with stronger labor markets widen our options. We all need a place to live, too, but housing is more costly in some places than in others. And our capacity for play comes out of everything left over from the fruits of our labor after taxes and housing costs – the price we pay to live in a civilized society.
Tax Relief: The (Non)Impact of Vancouver’s Real Estate Tax on the Seattle Market
In August 2016, the government of British Columbia, Canada, enacted a 15 percent tax on foreigners buying homes in the rapidly growing city of Vancouver. Most now agree that the Vancouver housing market has slowed substantially since last summer, but the data remain inconclusive as to any specific effects on international buyers of Vancouver homes. And there is less agreement on whether the tax has pushed would-be buyers of Canadian homes to instead consider U.S. homes south of the 49th parallel, especially in nearby Seattle.
