In this week’s Flash Briefing, Redfin Corp. has announced it is purchasing apartment search site RentPath Holdings, Inc., single-family permits declined and multi-family permits increased dramatically, and more than two-thirds of survey respondents say they are surprised at what they can afford, see how they did it!
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Redfin Acquires RentPath
- Redfin Corp. has announced it is purchasing apartment search site RentPath Holdings, Inc., in a move that will combine the sites for those looking to purchase or rent a home.
- RentPath owns property sites like ApartmentGuide.com, Rent.com, and Rentals.com. Its sites attract an average of about 16 million monthly visitors.
- Together with RentPath, Redfin believes that they can create an online destination for every North American to find a home.”
Single-Family Permits on the Decline
- A slowdown in the construction of single-family homes prompted the decline in housing starts during the first part of the year . Single-family starts were down 12% nationwide, whereas multifamily starts were up 16%.
- The number of permits issued for buildings with five or more housing units was up 28%, versus a 3.8% uptick for single-family permits.
- After a hot streak of construction in the latter half of last year, a modest pause should not be viewed as a slowdown in momentum, says Bill Banfield, from Rocket Mortgage
Surprising Affordability For First Time Home Buyers
- More than two-thirds of survey respondents say they are surprised at what they can afford; 47% say their budget is larger than they thought it would be.
- First-time buyers also are saving for a home faster than they expected by saving paychecks including tax refunds and stimulus checks, and by getting help from family.
- 52% of Americans who bought their first home in 2020 say they received down payment assistance from friends or family, most notably their parents.
