5 at 5: Your Daily Digest for Real Estate Investing, 1/22/21
Home sales are rising through 2021, gyms are a staple, American Eagle is taking and giving back, GSEs and note investing.
In today’s news
Year-end home sales at 14-year high, seen strength in 2021
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) says existing home sales rose in December and home sales in 2020 reached their highest level since 2006.
Why It Matters: This is one of the key economic indicators, and the NAR believes that more is expected this year as new buyers enter the market.
Are Gyms Dead? Why home training stays here
With one in four gyms slated to close last year due to the pandemic, Americans spent a lot of money on pelotons and other digitally networked home exercise equipment. Now some say we will never return, the Wall Street Journal reports today.
Why It Matters: This WSJ Piece [subscription required] addresses two real estate investment trends: larger living space and closed retail space. For one of them, the future looks somehow bleak.
American Eagle closes 200 to 225 stores but opens new creepy locations
American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE: AEO) announced this week that it will close hundreds of its American Eagle flagship stores and open 60 to 75 new locations for its more successful lingerie and active clothing brand Aerie over the next several years.
Why It Matters: Most announcements of large store closures these days don’t include new store openings either, but whether this is a wash for investors in real estate investment trusts (REITs) and other property owners remains to be seen. A good sleeping place for an American eagle is not necessarily the same for Aerie.
Today on Millionacres
What GSE capitalization could mean for investors
The transition from conservatism to private capitalization for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac is slowly but surely continuing, and it’s going to be a big deal.
Why It Matters: Millionacres’ Liz Brumer explains why she believes raising capital requirements and setting tighter lending policies on Fannie and Freddie-sponsored loans to be a win-win, while taking the burden of maintaining those loans on from U.S. taxpayers is shifted to the private market.
5 things investors should know in 2021
While mortgage origination and refinancing continue to hit record highs, mortgage defaults and unemployment rates continue to rise. What does this mean for mortgage investors?
Why it’s important: On a very related topic, Liz Brumer also shares what mortgage investors should look out for as the coronavirus crisis continues.