Bywater To Open in New Orleans in 2022

 Bywater is a 93-room poshtel that is opening this year in New Orleans. This project was originally to be built in 2018 but was delayed due to securing funding and the start of the pandemic.

"We had to put the capital together to make it all happen," Kelso said. "I said [to investors], 'We can build during the downturn and open at the finish, and New Orleans is resilient.'"

A poshtel is a new concept that has become popular in the hotel industry. Some call them a "posh" hostel. They are usually in unique buildings and offer many perks and freebies. They offer services and amenities that hostels do not especially privacy. These accommodations have both private rooms and shared rooms.

The $25 million poshtel will be located on the riverfront at the intersection of Chartres and Mazant. The project is being built by developer Ted Kelso and hotel brand ARRIVE by Palisociety. Originally the building would include 43 upscale hostel-style rooms targeting travelers in their 20s and 30s. New Orleans residents gave a lot of push back so the team came up with a solution.

"We transitioned from a hostel model to more of a traditional hotel. That made sense after talking to neighbors about what was right for the neighborhood," Kelso said. "ARRIVE is perfect. Their [properties] are all in neighborhoods similar to Bywater, demographically, so that's what sparked the transition to a hotel."

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Freddie Mac Wants To Help Renters Build Up Their Credit Through

 Renters now have a chance to use their rental payments to help build their credit scores. Freddie Mac has a new program that allows renters to use their on-time monthly rent payments to build up their credit. This is good news for the renters but also for the owners or managers of rental properties as an incentive. Property owners or rental managers can now report on-time rental payments to the credit bureaus.

This new program's purpose is to help those who do not have a credit score. It is reported that 45 million U.S. adults have no credit score. In fact, less than 10% of renters currently see their on-time rental payment history reflected in their credit scores. This is preventing many U.S. adults from getting some of the best mortgage rates in order to purchase a new home.

“Rent payments are often the single largest monthly line item in a family’s budget, but paying your rent on time does not show up in a credit report like a mortgage payment,” says Michael DeVito, CEO of Freddie Mac. “That puts the 44 million households who rent at a significant disadvantage when they seek financing for a home, a car, or even an education. While there remains more to do, this is a meaningful step in addressing this age-old problem.”

Esusu Financial Inc. technology is used by Freddi Mac to report rental payments and rental data to all three credit bureaus. When a renter misses a payment, it will automatically unenroll renters. As an incentive, Freddie Mac will allow closing cost credits on multi-family loans to those who chose to use the Esusu platform.

“At present, the most common way for rents to be reported to the credit bureaus is when there is a missed payment that has gone to a collections agency,” says Alexis Sofyanos, senior director of Equity in Multifamily Housing at Freddie Mac. “Freddie Mac wants to flip that script, so that renters who pay their rent on time and in full each month get credit for doing so, while also putting in safeguards for the most vulnerable.”

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The Homebuying Process Made Easy

 Buying a home is can be a stressful and complicated process. Homes.com reported that 40% of people say that purchasing a home is one of the most stressful events. This is a life-changing event and homeowners should be excited about it.

Now is an awesome time to purchase a home with low-interest rates. In fact, in the past 18 months, the low-interest rates have pushed homeownership up by 2.1 million in 2020. If you are in the market for a new home becoming familiar with the steps you must take can help smooth out the obstacles that might come your way.

Determine How Much Home You Can Afford

This is the first basic step. A homeowner needs to know how much house they can afford. It is important to become familiar with the debt-to-income ratio (DTI). The DTI is the percentage of your income required to pay down existing debt.

Professionals in the industry advise keeping your housing expenses around 30% or less of your annual income. So if you have an annual income of $50,000 your expenses should not be over $15,000 a year. These expenses include your mortgage payments, property taxes, and homeowners insurance.

Get A Pre-Approval Letter

Once you have established how much you can afford, then you need to get a pre-approval letter. Having a pre-approval letter lets agents and sellers know that you are a serious buyer. Just remember that each pre-approval letter you obtain will put a hard inquiry on your credit report.

Some leaders in the industry suggest getting more than one pre-approval letter. If you do decide to do this. Get them within a 30-day period so that it will count as just one hard inquiry.

Explore Your Mortgage Options

You will want to shop around to find the best rate and the best mortgage option for you. There are two mortgage types that leaders suggest. The fixed-rate mortgage loan has a rate that stays the same so the payment throughout the loan will be the same. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARMs) begins with a fixed rate but does change every so often. If you are planning to stay in your home for a shorter period of time, then this loan might best suit you.

Another thing to consider is mortgage points. If you want to reduce your long-term costs you can purchase mortgage points to save. You can purchase these at closing and each point is worth 1% of your mortgage amount and each point will reduce your rate by .25%.

Take these steps into consideration before you start on your homebuying journey. Remember to choose a Realtor who can help you through the whole process.

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Single-Family and Multifamily Ends 2021 With Strong Demand for New Construction

 

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau reported that both single-family and multifamily production increased 11.8% to an annual rate of 1.68 million units. The strong production stems from the high demand for new construction in the housing industry.

This means that 1.68 million homes will be started in the development stage if this pace kept up for the next year. Separated out, single-family increased to 11.3% to 1.17 million seasonally adjusted annual rate and multifamily increased 12.9% at a 506,000 seasonally adjusted annual rate.

Compared to the same time frame of 2020, on a regional and year-to-date basis (January through November of 2021 compared to that same time frame a year ago), combined single-family and multifamily starts are 24.4% higher in the Northeast, 9.6% higher in the Midwest, 15.4% higher in the South and 19.4% higher in the West.

As far as permits, they increased 3.6% to 1.17 million. Single-family permits rose 2.7% to 1.10 million and multifamily increased 5.2% to 609,000 annual paces.

“Mirroring gains in the HMI reading of builder sentiment, single-family housing starts accelerated near the end of 2021 and are up 15.2% year-to-date as demand for new construction remains strong due to a lean inventory of resale housing,” said NAHB Chairman Chuck Fowke. “Policymakers need to help alleviate ongoing building material supply chain bottlenecks that are preventing builders from keeping up with buyer demand.”

“Breaking an eight-year trend, in recent months there have been more single-family homes under construction than multifamily units,” said NAHB Chief Economist Robert Dietz. “Moreover, despite some cooling earlier this year, the continued strength of single-family construction in 2021 means there are now 28% more single-family homes under construction than a year ago. These gains mean single-family completions will increase in 2022, bringing more inventory to market despite a 19% year-over-year rise in construction material costs and longer construction times.”

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