“Prices are growing faster in markets with stronger job growth,” says Jed Kolko, chief economist for real estate website Trulia.

The Standard & Poor’s Case-Shiller index of the 20 leading cities indicates that home prices received a modest 9.3 percent increase in February from the same time a year ago. Our current standing represents a 1.2 percent increase from January on a seasonally adjusted basis.

Rising home prices were most relevant in the following cities:

• Phoenix (up almost 23%)
• San Francisco (up almost 19%)
• Las Vegas (up almost 18%)

By comparison, New York represents the city with the least growth, with a 1.9 percent annual gain.

Rising home prices continue to reveal modest increases across all 20 cities that were involved in the Case-Shiller Home Price Index. According to David M. Blitzer, Chairman of the Index Committee at S&P Dow Jones Indices, “the 10 and 20 City Composites recorded their highest annual growth rates since May 2006; seasonally adjusted monthly data show all 20 cities saw higher prices for two months in a row – the last time that happened was in early 2005.”

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It has proven difficult to pinpoint the exact reason homeownership rates continue to slip, as it is likely a combination of factors. Perhaps the government’s failure to successfully address the mortgage crisis has prevented potential home buyers from taking the next step in homeownership. According to Jed Kolko, a chief economist affiliated with Trulia, “tight credit, tight for-sale inventory, the challenge of saving for a down payment, and more rental single-family supply all helped lower the homeownership rate.”

The homeownership rate, as its name suggests, is representative of the percentage of owners currently occupying a household. To determine the homeownership rate, divide the number of households occupied by owners by the total number of occupied homes. The resulting number will reveal a steady decline in recent years. Our current homeownership rate is 4.2 percent lower than its peak of 69.2 percent, reached in 2004.

Geographical regions throughout the United States demonstrated a variety of homeownership rates. The following percentages represent each region and their current homeownership rate for the first quarter of 2013:

• 59.4% in the West
• 62.5% in the Northeast
• 66.5% in the South
• 70% in the Midwest

Attractive interest rates, nearing record lows, have facilitated the housing sector’s recovery. Market analysts suggest that our current trajectory is pointed in the right direction. However, the same interest rates that are attempting to remove us from this crisis may result in strict lending practices that are preventing many from buying a home.

The post Homeownership Rate Continues Downward Trend appeared first on FortuneBuilders.

Big Brother, as the scandal has been aptly named, is secretly monitoring an increasing number of Americans and U.S. companies for suspicious activity. With increased precautions taken by the government, is your real estate investing company really safe? What does it mean for business owners? Who else can see your records?

What you say and whom you communicate with can have a major impact on your career. An investigation into your files can be disastrous due to business interruption and bad press. Continue to protect your real estate business and increase profitability.

Furthermore, if third parties are able to steal information, it can lead to losing leads and competitors stealing your real estate investing and marketing strategies. If customer IDs are stolen and financial information is compromised, the ensuing lawsuits can cripple even the most affluent real estate companies.

It’s time to step up security and protect your real estate business. Use better passwords, be cautious of where you store data, how it is transferred, and the internet connections you use. Maybe even consider military grade encryption services for protecting calls, texts and file transfers.

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Pending home sales are currently sitting at 105.7, showing a seven percent increase over this time last year. Because the level of monthly sales-contract activity traditionally parallels the level of closed existing-home sales, March’s numbers indicate a potential rise in future house sales.

Pending home sales, in which contracts have been signed but not closed, continue to surpass above year-ago rates. Positive trends have been seen for approximately two years straight. Lawrence Yun, a chief economist associated with the NAR, has alluded to the benefit this increase should have on the housing sector. “Contract activity has been in a narrow range in recent months, not from a pause in demand but because of limited supply. Little movement is expected in near-term sales closings, but they should edge up modestly as the year progresses,” he said. “Job additions and rising household wealth will continue to support housing demand.”

The following trends indicate how specific geographic regions were reflected on the recent PHSI:

• The Northeast index increased 6.3 percent from March 2012.
• The Midwest index increased 13.7 percent from March 2012.
• The South’s index increased 10.4 percent from March 2012.
• The West was the only region to reflect a decrease, as pending home sales were 4.3 percent below last year.

The PHSI represents one of the most prominent housing sector indicators, as it measures pending housing contract activity. Not to be confused with closing transactions, pending sales represent the signing of a contract. The index, therefore, takes into consideration 20 percent of signed real estate contracts for existing single-family homes, condos and co-ops.

As pending home sales have exhibited a direct correlation to existing-home sales, March’s 1.5 percent increase may result in more sales for 2013. Total existing-home sales for this year are expected to reach five million, seven percent more than this time a year ago. The national median existing-home price is also project to receive a modest bump in value, expected to rise about 7.5 percent. Increased activity could see in upward trend in new housing starts as well.

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Staying focused, being original and doing your own thing has a lot of value as a real estate investing pro. Yet, being blind to what is going on around you, failing to pay attention to what competitors are doing and promising the same prospects that you are marketing to is a recipe for disaster.

Know your competitors, know their product and be aware of what they are promising the public. More specifically, find out what buyers want and how to give it to them.

If you don’t, you’ll often find yourself offering an inferior product and service. Even worse, you may be trying to ask a premium for an already outdated product.

One of the biggest issues today, as marketers and investors flood back into the business, is going up against those making huge promises. They are promising huge returns to investor buyers, private lenders and home sellers. Current ads mention bewildering offers, suggesting an opportunity to get into cheap deals and see as high as 40% returns.

This doesn’t necessarily mean that they are lying, really have a better offer, or can’t be beat; but if real estate investors want to win, they must know how to compete.

You can’t always make bigger and better promises of real estate investing yields, or dollars, but you can position yourself better.

So how do you do that? Try establishing more credibility and authority while making more noise. Use the media to position your real estate investing company against these competitors and competing products. Set the benchmark by which investors, lenders, buyers and sellers make their decisions.

Then decide whether or not avoiding head to head marketing campaigns is the best strategy. Leverage some of the same channels. Use magazines, email lists, social media influences and the press. Just do it better than those you are competing against.

The post Real Estate Investing: The Importance of Marketing Research appeared first on FortuneBuilders.