A report from the New Hampshire Bulletin. “There are some signs that the mania may be starting to diminish, housing experts say. There are little signs that the market could be nearing a turning point. The average number of days that house listings are active has ticked up slightly, as has the number of houses available, noted Ben Frost, managing director of policy at the New Hampshire Housing Finance Authority. And agents are seeing changes on the ground, too.”
“‘I think if you checked in with me two months from now, it could be different,’ said Adam Gaudet, a Realtor in Concord. ‘… Out-of-state buyers that would normally be calling me have called less. And at things like open houses, you don’t have nearly as many Connecticut, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Vermont plates.’ Joanie McIntire, a real estate agent with Coldwell Banker J. Hampe Associates has also seen signals. Where earlier this year and last year 20 people might show up at a house viewing, these days that number has dropped to four or five, she said.”
From Yahoo Finance. “Many independent property owners have been swamped by rising costs associated with taxes, insurance, utilities and upkeep, even as tenants have gotten government lifelines. ‘We’re already been forced to sell our house so it doesn’t help us,’ James Bathgate, a landlord in California, told Yahoo Finance. ‘I do feel sorry for the thousands of other mom and pop landlords, many of whom are retired and living on fixed incomes, just like us and rely on rental income for their retirement.’”
“Bathgate owned a rental home in a rural town in San Mateo County, in Northern California, where he says he is owed more than $50,000 in unpaid rent dating back to March of 2020. Bathgate made the decision to put his house up for sale, which he has owned since 1983. ‘We had to sell the property because I couldn’t afford it every month, not getting any income from rent and being forced to take $3,000 a month expenses on the property,’ he explained. Even once the jury trials started up again in July, Bathgate doesn’t expect to recover the money he has lost. ‘Is the government going to now pay me $70,000 that they stole from me? I doubt it,’ Bathgate said.”
The New York Post. “An Air Force veteran who owns three upstate New York properties has been forced to live in her car because her tenants have refused to pay rent. Brandie LaCasse told CBS News that she has been living at friends’ homes and out of her car with her young daughter. She said she is owed more than $23,000 in unpaid rent but cannot force her tenants to pay or leave because of federal and state moratoriums on evictions.”
“‘I’ve cried many nights, like thinking, ‘Where’s my money?’ the single mom said. ‘I don’t understand how they can give my private property to somebody to live for free. I bought that property. I fixed it up with my blood, sweat and tears.’”
From Realtor.com on New York. “A duplex located on what’s known as Billionaires Row has made a statement of its own, with a $150 million price tag. ‘It’s not surprising NYC is seeing a recent influx of nine-figure asking prices, as the luxury market continues to strengthen, driven by the insatiable demand of ultra-high-net-worth buyers for exceptionally grand apartments,’ says the real estate agent Jenny Lenz.”
“She added, ‘However not all nine-figure price tags are created equal. Many times, they are used as clickbait and a gross exaggeration of a property’s true value, while others are actually justified based on the specific location, size and level of finish. It all comes down to the individual product—and savvy buyers can quickly determine which ones are real and which ones are simply a marketing ploy.’”
“Dolly Lenz, CEO of Dolly Lenz Real Estate, added that this $150 million luxury condo has the credentials to back up its prodigious price tag. ‘It’s the real deal,’ she says. ‘Which doesn’t mean it’s not aspirational in pricing—and likely negotiable.’”
The Marin Independent Journal in California. “Agents say the market has settled down a bit from the feverish activity of the last few months. But Beth Sasan, an agent with the Golden Gate Sotheby’s International Realty office in Greenbrae, said ‘special houses’ can still fetch 20 offers or so. ‘I feel like we’re having not a cooldown, but a normal leveling of the market,’ she said. ‘It’s not a frenzy like it was in May.’”
From Barrie Today in Canada. “After a buzzing spring market for Barrie condos, the expected summer slowdown hit. Comparing this summer with last year, 2021 has been very different than in 2020. Last summer, the market started to explode in June. In July, buyer demand dropped, causing prices to adjust. The average sales price for a condo apartment decreased nine per cent from June. Although, units were selling for 99 per cent of their original list price and average days on market went from 30 days to three weeks.”
“The same was the case for the condo townhouse sector in Barrie. Even though bidding wars were still taking place and units were selling for 102.8 per cent of the seller’s asking price, there was an eight per cent decrease in the average sale price from June to July.”
The Australian Financial Review. “Phoebe Blamey, director of Melbourne-based Clover Financial Solutions, a mortgage broker, says a sharp fall in overseas students studying in Australia is creating opportunities for apartment investors. ‘Student accommodation is selling at a discount because some owners are struggling to keep investment properties without tenants,’ Blamey says about privately owned student apartments around Melbourne’s inner-suburban Caulfield and Hawthorn.”
From Bloomberg. “Under mounting pressure from financial regulators to shore up its finances, China Evergrande Group is poised to dump more of its sprawling empire. The clock is ticking for billionaire Hui Ka Yan and his company, which is laden with US$300 billion in liabilities to banks, suppliers and homebuyers. Despite getting temporary relief from some major creditors, the message from policymakers is clear: Evergrande must resolve its debt woes fast enough to avoid roiling the world’s second-largest economy.”
“That means demonstrating its goodwill by quickly selling assets, potentially at steep discounts. Evergrande may offload its Hong Kong headquarters and a large residential land parcel in the city at a loss. Since March, spooked investors have shaved about US$78 billion from the value of Mr Hui’s electric vehicle (EV) and property management units, which are also on the block.”
“‘Evergrande bonds will ultimately rise or fall based on the company’s ability to monetise non-core assets ahead of existing repayment schedules and before Beijing runs out of patience,’ said Brock Silvers, chief investment officer of Kaiyuan Capital in Hong Kong.”