USD: Burnham-Moores Center for Real Estate News

Land Ho!

Wed, 29 May 2013 00:00:00 -0700

The Saturday Evening Post -- “Land is the only thing in the world that amounts to anything, for ’tis the only thing in this world that lasts. … ’Tis the only thing worth working for, worth fighting for, worth dying for,” says Gerald O’Hara to daughter Scarlett in Gone with the Wind. Wise words. Real estate was on an upward surge for decades. It seemed unstoppable. Then, along came the disastrous collapse of the housing bubble in 2007. Six years later, we’re seeing a good rebound in real estate prices, and that has many, perhaps you, wondering if land is once again, if not worth fighting and dying for, at least worth investing in. ... Norman Miller, Ph.D., professor at the Burnham-Moores Center for Real Estate at the University of San Diego, says that now might be a good time to invest in either REITs or stocks in the housing-construction industry. Of these two investment choices, “REITs are more a buy-and-hold investment, for those who want long-term exposure to real estate without the headaches of being a landlord,” says Miller. “Housing stocks, subject to even more risk, as well as potential, are appropriate for only the most aggressive investors.” (Full Story)

EconoMeter: Is Bernanke All Wrong?

Sun, 26 May 2013 00:00:00 -0700

U-T San Diego -- Q: Is Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke running the “most inappropriate monetary policy in history,” as claimed by a noted Wall Street hedge fund manager? Panel's answer: Yes 1, No 7 (Full Story)

Home Prices in County Hit Five-Year High: $400K

Tue, 14 May 2013 00:00:00 -0700

U-T San Diego -- San Diego County home prices have hit the highest level in five years, as distressed sales continue to fall and mortgage rates are still near record lows. The median price of a home sold in April rose to $400,000, up 21 percent from the same time a year ago, reported San Diego-based real estate monitor DataQuick on Tuesday. Last month’s median price matched the median in April 2008. The all-time peak was $517,500 in November 2005. Sales rose 7 percent from a year ago to 3,792. ... Norm Miller, professor at University of San Diego’s Burnham-Moores Center for Real Estate, said the plan has worked so far. But if it goes on for too many years and double-digit price hikes persist, those conditions could be unsustainable and a real estate bubble could form, he said. For now, another bubble can be avoided if homebuyers continue to buy what they can afford and underwriting standards for mortgages continue to be strict, Miller said. A key difference between the housing climate now and during the lead-up to the real estate crash is that lenders aren’t issuing subprime or second mortgages, which got a lot of homeowners into trouble. (Full Story)

Why Homes With Open Space Command Big Bucks

Fri, 03 May 2013 00:00:00 -0700

Wall Street Journal -- Call it the flora-and-fauna effect: Home buyers will pay a premium to live near open, undeveloped land. So much for good neighbors. That's the conclusion of a Colorado State University study of home prices in conservation developments, where residential real estate is limited and a substantial amount of land, usually 50% to 70%, is set aside as open space. "That could mean wildlife habitats, agricultural lands, important cultural sites, open space for scenic vistas," says Sarah Reed, co-author of the study and associate conservation scientist with the Wildlife Conservation Society. Increasing lot size in an undesignated conservation development raised the market price by 38 cents per square foot or $16,662 per acre, researchers found. In nonconservation developments, a bigger lot size translated to only 9 cents per square foot, or $4,062 per acre. The study, funded by the National Association of Realtors and CSU's School of Global Environmental Sustainability, was published in December 2012 in the Journal of Sustainable Real Estate. (Full Story)

Should Shoppers Pay Internet Sales Tax?

Fri, 03 May 2013 00:00:00 -0700

U-T San Diego -- Should shoppers pay Internet sales tax? Norm Miller, University of San Diego, ANSWER: YES For the sake of equity in the face of ever increasing on-line sales there is no choice but to impose sales taxes on vendors. Imposing this burden will trigger a wave of third party vendors who will track all the various sales tax districts and automatically calculate, collect and assist in payments to local governments which will allow small to mid-size vendors to comply. Until these third party vendors fully emerge the burden on small vendors will be disproportionate, so it would be wise to provide a fairly slow phase-in period with some more generous exemptions for the very smallest vendors. (Full Story)

County's Economy Growing, Study Says

Thu, 02 May 2013 00:00:00 -0700

U-T San Diego -- San Diego's economy grew in the first quarter of 2013, and it should continue to do so through the rest of the year. That's according to Alan Gin, economist at the University of San Diego, who on Thursday released his latest index of leading economic indicators for the local region. The index - the USD Burnham-Moores Center for Real Estate's Leading Economic Indicators - weighs stock prices, consumer confidence, initial unemployment claims and other parts of the economy to calculate growth. It mimics the national study done monthly by The Conference Board. (Full Story)

Economics Panel Grades GDP Reboot

Fri, 26 Apr 2013 00:00:00 -0700

U-T San Diego -- Q: Does it matter that GDP is being recalculated upward by about 3% to take into account the value of books, movies, software, research and other pieces of the “knowledged-based” economy? Panel's answer: Yes 6, No 2 (Full Story)

Econometer: Worried About Drop in Gold Prices?

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 00:00:00 -0700

U-T San Diego -- Q: Is the 30 percent drop in gold prices since September 2011’s high of $1,920 per ounce a cause for concern? Panel's answer: Yes 1, No 7 (Full Story)

Pitfalls of Real Estate Investing

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 00:00:00 -0700

ConsumerAffairs -- Here we go again. With the slow turnaround in the housing market, investors are beginning to come back, shopping for what are perceived as under-valued properties. "Affordability is definitely improved when interest rates are lower," said Norman Miller, professor at the Burnham-Moores Center for Real Estate at the University of San Diego. "But it is very likely that the top tiers of the owner-occupied housing market are the ones benefiting the most from lower mortgage rates as this group has been less affected by credit score downgrades or more restrictive underwriting." (Full Story)

Does Obama Have it Right on Social Security?

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 00:00:00 -0700

U-T San Diego -- Q: Does the proposed scaling back of Social Security benefits through lower inflation calculations represent a good start to reining in entitlement spending? Panel's answer: Yes 5, No 3 Alan Gin, University of San Diego, ANSWER: NO Norm Miller, University of San Diego, ANSWER: YES (Full Story)

Outlook Bright For San Diego's Economy

Tue, 09 Apr 2013 00:00:00 -0700

KPBS -- A surging construction industry and an improving job market are helping drive optimism about San Diego's economy. The San Diego region's index of leading economic indicators jumped nearly a full point in March. University of San Diego economist Alan Gin compiles the information. He said a surge in the number of multi-family building permits and a decline in first-time unemployment claims led the charge. (Full Story)

Will BRAIN Project Benefit San Diego?

Fri, 05 Apr 2013 00:00:00 -0700

U-T San Diego -- Q: Will research projects like the proposed $100 million annual brain-mapping undertaking bring significant economic benefits to San Diego? Alan Gin, University of San Diego Answer: Yes (Full Story)

Will Consumers Use Homes as ATMs Again?

Fri, 29 Mar 2013 00:00:00 -0700

U-T San Diego -- Q: Are you worried that homeowners will again turn to their positive home equity as a piggybank to fund their consumer urges? Alan Gin, University of San Diego. Answer: No. (Full Story)

Real Estate 'Flash Sales' Are Sign of Times

Wed, 27 Mar 2013 00:00:00 -0700

U-T San Diego -- If you’re looking to sell your home, the timing could not be better, as home prices are up in San Diego and demand is at its highest. Joe Bertocchini of the University of San Diego’s Burnham-Moores Center for Real Estate said the lack of supply in the current market is a contributing factor. The acceleration in the housing market has coined has even coined the term “Flash Sales.” “We’re seeing homes that are flying off the shelves so to speak, in matter of hours,” said Bertocchini. “Sometimes even within a day, less than 24 hours. We’re pretty stunned by what’s going on out there.” (Full Story)

EconoMeterists List Signs of Improvement

Fri, 22 Mar 2013 00:00:00 -0700

U-T San Diego -- Q: How will we know if the economic recovery in San Diego County is for real? Answers: Jobs, GPD, House Prices, other. (Full Story)

Honey, Who Shrunk the Office?

Sun, 17 Mar 2013 00:00:00 -0700

U-T San Diego -- Get ready to snuggle up closer to your office mate. That’s the prospect for the office of the future as the economy recovers and companies begin to add workers and occupy more space. If you’ve been working from a home office the past few years, you may be in for a shock when you return to a real office. Yahoo and Best Buy have canceled work-from-home schedules, but Norm Miller, a real estate professor at the University of San Diego, said those companies are not trendsetters. “It’s probably not a sign of the reversal of the working outside or at home trend but the inability of Yahoo or Best Buy to figure out how to manage remote workers,” Miller said in a webinar sponsored by CoStar Group. (Full Story)

USD Conference Examines Real Estate Climate

Mon, 11 Mar 2013 00:00:00 -0700

San Diego Business Journal -- A diverse economy is expected to keep local real estate on a path to recovery, even if short-term growth remains slow for both the San Diego and national economies, experts said at a real estate conference presented recently by University of San Diego. Organizers said about 700 attended the 17th annual conference presented at downtown’s Hilton San Diego Bayfront Hotel by USD’s Burnham-Moores Center for Real Estate. (Full Story)

Working at Home: Good for Employers?

Fri, 08 Mar 2013 00:00:00 -0800

U-T San Diego -- Q: Is working at home on a flexible schedule economically beneficial to employers as well as employees? Panel's answer: Yes 8, No 0 (Full Story)

An Innovation Ecosystem for Business Growth

Fri, 08 Mar 2013 00:00:00 -0800

The Daily Transcript -- Economic progress comes from the “rainforest recipe,” where an innovation ecosystem allows each person to play an equal and important role, said the managing director of T2 Venture Capital. Innovation is what happens “when ideas have sex,” Greg Horowitt said. He told the audience Friday at the University of San Diego's Burnham-Moores Center for Real Estate 17th annual conference that their role is to “build and manage brothels where innovation happens.” (Full Story)

Qualcomm's Jacobs: We Need Immigration Reform

Fri, 08 Mar 2013 00:00:00 -0800

U-T San Diego -- The lack of U.S. immigration reform could stifle economic growth in San Diego County and pigeonhole the region as a place that fails to attract major companies, said Qualcomm founding Chairman Irwin Jacobs at a local real estate conference on Friday. Technology and life-science companies in the county, like mobile chip maker Qualcomm, are having an increasingly hard time recruiting qualified workers because many of them are foreign graduates who can't secure visas to work legally in this country, said Jacobs, at an event hosted by USD's Burnham-Moores Center for Real Estate. (Full story)

Are Low Interest Rates Good Policy?

Fri, 01 Mar 2013 00:00:00 -0800

U-T San Diego -- Q: Should the Fed continue on its current policy of stimulating economic growth through low interest rates? Panel's answer: Yes 5, No 3 (Full Story)

How Bad Will Sequester Be for SD?

Fri, 22 Feb 2013 00:00:00 -0800

U-T San Diego -- Q: Will San Diego see any immediate effects March 1 of the sequester of $85 billion in federal funds? Panel's answer: Yes 7, No 1 (Full Story)

Boost Minimum Wage to $9?

Tue, 19 Feb 2013 00:00:00 -0800

U-T San Diego -- Q: Should the federal minimum wage be raised from $7.25 to $9 per hour as President Obama has recommended? Panel's answer: Yes 2, No 6. Alan Gin, University of San Diego ANSWER: YES Norm Miller, University of San Diego ANSWER: NO (Full Story)

Does it Pay off to Move to Texas?

Tue, 12 Feb 2013 00:00:00 -0800

U-T San Diego -- Q: Do companies gain a big enough economic advantage to justify relocating from California to Texas? Panel's answer: 3 Yes , 5 No Alan Gin, University of San Diego- ANSWER: NO Norm Miller, University of San Diego- ANSWER: YES (Full Story)

Stop Making Excuses for the CRA

Tue, 05 Feb 2013 00:00:00 -0800

American Banker -- From late-2008 to mid-2009, banks and financial institutions had already written off or written down credit losses on U.S. mortgages by over $1.6 trillion according to the OECD. Charge-offs on just the CDO-financed portion of the subprime lending debacle were recently estimated by economists at the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia to approach a half trillion dollars. The Community Reinvestment Act of 1977 is still the law of the land and, if it was a root cause of the last financial crisis, as opponents conclude, then it likely will be again. (Full Story)

Delay Debt-Ceiling Increase: OK?

Tue, 05 Feb 2013 00:00:00 -0800

U-T San Diego -- Q: Do you agree with the plan to extend the federal debt limit by an extra three months to provide more time for budget negotiations? Panel's answer: Yes 8, No 0 Alan Gin, University of San Diego, ANSWER: YES (Full Story)

FHA Reverse Mortgage Policy Changes Nearing

Tue, 05 Feb 2013 00:00:00 -0800

The Daily Transcript -- Reverse mortgages are causing trouble for the Federal Housing Administration, which could result in new policies going into effect in the next couple months. Carol Galante, commissioner and acting assistant secretary for housing, wrote in a letter to U.S. Sen. Bob Corker four policies to help correct structural problems in FHA’s Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) program. Those policy recommendations include: requiring borrowers with credit scores below 620 to have a maximum debt-to-income ratio no greater than 43 percent to be approved through FHA’s TOTAL Scorecard; a moratorium on the full-draw HECM Reverse Mortgage, which would result in “the immediate cessation of the use of the Standard Fixed Rate HECM product"; lowering the maximum loan-to-value ratio on loans above $625,500 to 95 percent from 96.5 percent, raising the down payment from 3.5 percent to 5 percent . . . An attempt to control fees and penalties could be good in terms of trying to “prevent some consumer exploitation,” said Norm Miller, professor at the Burnham-Moores Center for Real Estate at the University of San Diego. (Full Story)

San Diego's Housing Market Rebounds

Tue, 05 Feb 2013 00:00:00 -0800

Fox 5 San Diego -- The S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Index recently reported that home prices in San Diego have risen for nine straight months. Joe Bertocchini of the University of San Diego’s Burnham-Moores Center for Real Estate said when it comes to homes, San Diego’s market is lacking supply. (Full Story)

Require Paid Sick Time?

Fri, 18 Jan 2013 00:00:00 -0800

U-T San Diego -- Q: In light of the widespread flu outbreak, should all employers in California be required to provide paid sick time off? Panel's answer: 2 Yes , 6 No (Full Story)

Avoid Debt Ceiling with $1 Trillion Coin?

Fri, 11 Jan 2013 00:00:00 -0800

U-T San Diego -- Congress and the president face an impasses on raising the debt ceiling -- and this is one way out, some say. (Full Story)

Local Economic Index Rises Slightly; Outlook Positive

Fri, 04 Jan 2013 00:00:00 -0800

San Diego Business Journal -- An index measuring San Diego’s economy edged up a tenth of a point in November, its 11th rise in the last 13 months. The USD Burnham-Moores Center for Real Estate’s Index of Leading Economic Indicators for San Diego County increased to 122.8, up 6.6 points from November 2011. While the increase was modest, it was still positive and the outlook for the local economy in 2013 is for positive growth, said Alan Gin, the USD economics professor who compiles the data for the index. (Full Story)

County's Leading Economic Indicators Up Slightly in November

Thu, 03 Jan 2013 00:00:00 -0800

The Daily Transcript -- The USD Burnham-Moores Center for Real Estate's Index of Leading Economic Indicators for San Diego County rose 0.1 percent to 122.8 in November, up from October's value of 122.6. The gain was led by a strong positive move for initial claims for unemployment insurance, along with smaller gains for consumer confidence and help-wanted advertising. These outweighed moderate declines in building permits, local stock prices and the outlook for the national economy to push the USD Index to its 11th increase in the last 13 months, according to USD economics professor Alan Gin, who compiles the index. (Full Story)

EconoMeter Panelists Look Back at 2012

Fri, 28 Dec 2012 00:00:00 -0800

U-T San Diego -- Q: What surprised you most about the key economic indicators in 2012? (Full Story)

EconoMeter: Time to Get Back into Stock Market?

Fri, 21 Dec 2012 00:00:00 -0800

U-T San Diego -- Q: With the stocks rebounding in recent days, should big and small investors return to the stock market? Panel's answer: Yes 5 , No 2, Yes/No 1 (Full Story)

Should We Replace $1 Bill With a Coin?

Fri, 07 Dec 2012 00:00:00 -0800

San Diego Union-Tribune -- Q: Should the U.S. replace the dollar bill with the dollar coin and save a projected $4.4 billion over 30 years? Panel's answer: Yes , No (Full story)

Are We Better Off? EconoMeter Panel Knows

Fri, 07 Sep 2012 00:00:00 -0700

U-T San Diego -- Q: Is the U.S. better off today than it was four years ago? How about individual Americans? Alan Gin, University of San Diego Answer: Yes Four years ago, in the fourth quarter of 2008, the Gross Domestic Product fell by 8.9 percent, the largest quarterly drop in GDP in over 50 years. (Full Story)

U.S. Bank's Richard Davis at USD's Real Estate Conference

Tue, 06 Mar 2012 00:00:00 -0800

http://www.sddt.com/files/media/view.cfm?_t=US+Banks+Richard+Davis+at+USDs+16th+Annual+Real+Estate+Conference&media=MPCSB6Z7 - The Daily Transcript -- Reporter Samantha Henry speaks with Richard Davis, president and CEO of U.S. Bancorp, who was a featured speaker at USD Burnham-Moores Center for Real Estate's 16th Annual Real Estate Conference. (Full Interview)