WORD OF THE DAY: Woodshed

[WOOD-shed] Part of speech: Verb Origin: English, 18th century Definition: To practice a musical instrument Examples of Woodshed in a sentence “A musician who woodsheds several times a day will soon become a master of her instrument.” “The Band’s guitarist Robbie Robertson woodshedded so insistently he was known to take his guitar to the restroom.” About Woodshed “Woodshed” is a simple compound of “wood” and “shed,” a variant of “shade” derived from the Old English “sced.” Did you Know? As a noun, a woodshed normally describes an outdoor storage area for firewood — though it can also be a euphemism for an outhouse. Both places are located away from prying ears, so a woodshed has long been a place a musician can practice for long periods without fear of exasperating nearby listeners. “Woodshedding” as a verb resulted from the commonality of this practice.

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Millennial Home Buyers in a Changing Real Estate Market

Younger home buyers want a space to grow their family, but are facing unique challenges and intense competition with Boomer buyers The Millennial Generation, now in their late 20s to early 40s, are entering the housing market in higher numbers than ever before. Just a few years ago, this cohort was derided as forever renters or perpetually living at home with parents, but housing and mortgage statistics today indicate that many Millennials were simply waiting longer than their parents had to buy their first home. The Millennial home buying process does look different from that of generations before. Listing and mortgage applications have moved online, so younger people can house hunt and secure financing from the comfort of their couch. Millennials are also looking for smaller homes and are more willing than Boomers to take a chance on a fixer-upper. But there are also many Millennial buying trends that mirror that of previous generations, including wanting a home in a safe neighborhood, with good schools, and room to raise a family. State of the Economy and Millennial Home BuyingWhen the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020, the economic downturn took a toll on younger Americans. According to Pew Research, 52% of adults aged 18-34 are now living with their parents due to economic factors and the Covid-19 pandemic. Student loan debt, sluggish wage increases and the high cost of rent all played a role. The pandemic also drastically shifted our relationship to our jobs. Work from home policies eliminated the need to live in city centers. What followed was higher demand for homes in suburban areas and smaller cities. Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate The Masiello Group saw this play out in Northern New England, with an increase in home buyers from urban areas along the Interstate 95 corridor relocating to small towns and cities in Maine and New Hampshire. As demand in the housing market shifted, so did the demographics of who’s buying. Research from Zillow shows that half of all home buyers in 2021 were under the age of 41 and the median age of home buyer was 36. According to the CoreLogic Loan Application Database, millennials made up 67% of first-time home purchase applications last year. Despite economic setbacks, Millennials are finding ways to save for a home and are diving into the real estate market. What Millennials Want in a HomeSurveys of Millennial home buyers show that affordability is the number one factor in buying a home and that they are willing to move to more affordable cities to get what they want. Counter to stereotypes about Millennials and their desire for big cities and apartment living, one survey showed that having a large yard and a quiet neighborhood were the top attributes Millennials are searching for. Like many generations before, reaching the financial milestone of homeownership is very important to Millennials. According to Realtor.com, two-thirds of Millennials say the desire for homeownership is important. “Millennials, it turns out, aren’t that different from the Americans that came before them,” said Chris Masiello, President and CEO of Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate The Masiello Group. “They want that piece of the American dream, and are seizing it, all while facing some challenges that are unique to their generation.” Millennials vs. BoomersOne of the more surprising statistics in Millennial homeownership is that these buyers tend to want smaller homes than older generations. Millennials are having smaller families and may not need the larger homes that were popular in the early 2000s. This generation also tends to be more environmentally conscious and may not want the impact (and expense) of heating and cooling a 2,500-square-foot home. Affordability is also a factor. If Millennials are looking for less expensive homes, smaller may be all that’s available in their budget. These smaller homes are also the same homes many Boomers are looking at when downsizing. One survey found Millennials are searching for a home, on average, that’s about 1,700-square-feet in size, while Boomers are looking for a home around 1,900-square-feet. This exacerbates an already tight inventory supply by up-ending the typical home lifecycle. For generations past, younger home buyers could depend on a steady supply of new construction along with a number of homes up for sale that were previously occupied by older people now looking to downsize. New construction declined steeply after the Great Recession, greatly reducing inventory today. In addition, the Boomers are either choosing to stay longer in their family homes to age-in-place or are “downsizing” into the very homes Millennials are targeting. “The lack of inventory, the high demand for those smaller starter homes, and the competition with older generations who have a lifetime of savings and accrued equity makes it very tough for Millennials to get a foothold in the real estate market,” said Masiello. “They really need to do their legwork at the beginning of the home buying process to compete.” That work includes securing financing, knowing their budget, and working with a buyer’s agent that can quickly notify home buyers when affordable options become available. About Better Homes & Garden Real Estate | The Masiello Group With 36 offices throughout Northern New England, BHGRE The Masiello Group has been the region’s leader offering a full range of services to brokers, sales associates and home buyers and sellers. It is the only company in region to offer home services, including mortgage, title, home warranty, homeowner insurance, and relocation services under one roof. Visit www.masiello.com to learn more. SOURCE Better Homes and Garden Real Estate The Masiello Group

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Redfin Reports Asking Rents Rose a Record 15% in January

Portland and Austin saw the largest increases, with rents surging more than 30% year over year Average monthly asking rents in the U.S. increased 15.2% year over year to $1,891 in January, according to a new report from Redfin (redfin.com), the technology-powered real estate brokerage. This was the largest annual jump since at least February 2020. Meanwhile, the national median monthly mortgage payment for homebuyers climbed 25% year over year to $1,595, also the biggest increase in Redfin’s records. “Moving right now is expensive, whether you’re renting or buying,” said Redfin Chief Economist Daryl Fairweather. “One of the only ways to avoid high housing costs is to move somewhere cheaper, but the list of places that are truly inexpensive is shrinking. Rising mortgage rates are squeezing more Americans out of the for-sale market, which will likely put increasing pressure on rents in the coming months.” Year over year, rent increases outpaced mortgage-payment increases for new homebuyers in just 13 of the 50 largest U.S. metro areas in January. Rents Are Up Over 30% In Portland, OR, Austin, TX & New York City The 10 metro areas with the biggest increases in rent prices—up 30% or more year over year—are primarily located in the Tri-State Area and Florida. Portland, OR and Austin, TX also made the list, leading the way with increases of 39% and 35%, respectively. Top 10 Metro Areas With Fastest-Rising Rents Year Over Year Portland, OR (+39%) Austin, TX (+35%) Newark, NJ (+33%) Nassau County, NY (+33%) New York, NY (+33%) New Brunswick, NJ (+33%) Tampa, FL (+31%) Fort Lauderdale, FL (+31%) West Palm Beach, FL (+31%) Miami, FL (+31%) Just two of the top 50 metro areas saw rents fall in January from a year earlier. Rents declined 4% in both Kansas City, MO and Milwaukee. To read the full report, including charts, additional data and methodology, please visit: https://www.redfin.com/news/redfin-rental-report-january-2022/ About Redfin Redfin (www.redfin.com) is a technology-powered real estate company. We help people find a place to live with brokerage, instant home-buying (iBuying), rentals, lending, title insurance, and renovations services. We sell homes for more money and charge half the fee. We also run the country’s #1 real-estate brokerage site. Our home-buying customers see homes first with on-demand tours, and our lending and title services help them close quickly. Customers selling a home can take an instant cash offer from Redfin or have our renovations crew fix up their home to sell for top dollar. Our rentals business empowers millions nationwide to find apartments and houses for rent. Since launching in 2006, we’ve saved customers more than $1 billion in commissions. We serve more than 100 markets across the U.S. and Canada and employ over 6,000 people.

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ArborCrowd Launches Single-Family Build-to-Rent Investment Offering in Colorado Springs, CO

Targeting 18% to 23% net internal rate of return over a two- to four-year hold period ArborCrowd, the first crowdfunding platform launched by a real estate institution, announced a new offering that allows investors to acquire equity interests in Selby Ranch, a single-family rental (SFR) and build-to-rent (BTR) development located in Colorado Springs, CO. with a total capitalization of $61.65 million. The offering enables individuals to invest in the SFR and BTR asset class, one of commercial real estate’s fastest growing and most in-demand sectors. Representing approximately 17 percent of the overall single-family housing market, the SFR asset class has seen significant institutional investment, driving increased competition and creating higher barriers to entry for individual investors. AHV Communities (AHV), a leading, vertically integrated developer and operator with extensive experience in the build-to-rent asset class, is part of the project’s sponsorship group. Affiliates of ArborCrowd, AHV and MDO Capital, a commercial real estate finance firm, have collectively funded 30 percent of the deal’s total equity. Arbor Commercial Mortgage, a national direct lender and member of The Arbor Family of Companies alongside ArborCrowd, provided a $46.24 million loan to finance the construction of the project. ArborCrowd now seeks to raise $10.79 million from investors for the remaining equity, which an ArborCrowd affiliate has prefunded into the transaction. The project is expected to break ground in 2022 and complete construction in 2024. The Selby Ranch deal is an especially attractive investment opportunity due to: The continued prominence and growth of the single-family build-to-rent asset class, which has seen more than $45 billion of institutional investment in 2021 and 14.7 percent year-over-year national rent growth ending in October 2021. Strong sponsorship in AHV, an experienced developer of build-to-rent communities having developed 13 communities containing over 2,200 homes since 2013. The Arbor Family of Companies’ unparalleled experience in single-family rentals, having pioneered a specific lending program for the asset class in 2019. The alignment of interests between ArborCrowd and investors in the deal’s capital stack, in which a member of its management team is also personally invested. Colorado Springs’ booming metro area, which has experienced population and employment growth far exceeding national rates over the past decade. “Our expansion into the single-family build-to-rent asset class represents a significant step in ArborCrowd’s broader evolution by enabling us to offer individual investors coveted access to a highly sought-after property type,” said Co-Founder and COO Adam Kaufman. “By breaking down the barriers to entry for investing in single-family rentals and capitalizing on the incredible demand for these communities across the nation – particularly in secondary and tertiary markets – we’re affording investors opportunities to generate the returns they seek. Moreover, as one of the first institutions to focus heavily in the space, our management team is uniquely positioned to evaluate and invest in single-family build-to-rent projects.” Mr. Kaufman continued, “Selby Ranch in particular is an ideal project to launch our first investment offering in the single-family rental space as it meets our rigorous underwriting requirements and provides exposure to the thriving Colorado Springs market, which features a distinct balance between suburban and urban lifestyles. As factors that include rising home prices, remote work trends, migration to suburban locations and an aging millennial population continue to drive interest in single-family rentals, we see significant growth for this asset class on the horizon.” Once completed, Selby Ranch will feature 163 three- and four-bedroom units with an average size of 1,310 square feet. Spanning roughly 13.2 acres, the townhome-style single-family units will be spread across 47 buildings and include attached two-car garages, stainless steel appliances, and central air conditioning. Proposed shared amenities consist of a community clubhouse, pool, fitness center and children’s play area. The Colorado Springs Metropolitan Statistical Area (“Colorado Springs MSA”) is the second largest in Colorado after Denver, with a population that’s expected to grow to nearly 770,500 residents by 2026. Its high quality of life, vibrant downtown, affordability and flourishing business climate, which is bolstered by major employers including Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Raytheon and L3 Harris Technologies, have contributed to population growth that has doubled the national average from 2010 to 2021. Additionally, Colorado Springs offers numerous highlights for residents, including more than 50 major outdoor attractions and parks, the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Museum and Pike’s Peak, one of America’s most prominent mountains. To learn more about Selby Ranch and access the offering overview and private placement memorandum, which includes market reports, property details, risks, financial pro formas and more, please visit https://www.arborcrowd.com/selby-ranch-sfr-community. About ArborCrowdArborCrowd is the first real estate crowdfunding platform launched by a real estate institution, opening up an exclusive network to a new class of investors. As part of The Arbor Family of Companies, which includes Arbor Realty Trust, a leading publicly traded commercial mortgage real estate investment trust, ArborCrowd is backed by more than 30 years of leadership experience. ArborCrowd reviews more than 500 deals a year from its proprietary network and only chooses the ones that survive its rigorous underwriting process. ArborCrowd prefunds capital to a deal prior to launching the offering to investors. This ensures the deal closes and allows ArborCrowd to offer investors accurate and detailed information about the property. Additionally, ArborCrowd chooses to present one deal at a time, so there is no guessing what property investors will actually own.

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WORD OF THE DAY: Advert

[ad-VERT] Part of speech: Verb Origin: Late Middle English, 12th to 14th century Definition: Refer to in speaking or writing Examples of Advert in a sentence “My brother awkwardly adverted to Mom’s new boyfriend in front of our dad.” “The car’s previous owner did not advert to the vehicle’s history of accidents and repairs.” About Advert The basis of “advert” is the Latin “advertere,” meaning to direct one’s senses or attention, but the word itself draws directly on the Middle French “avertir,” which meant “to take note of.” Initially, “advert” meant “turn one’s attention to,” but later it broadened to mean “to bring to another person’s attention.” It is the root of modern “advertising,” of which the goal is to capture the audience’s attention. Did you Know? The British use “advert” as a shortened slang noun for “advertisement,” but the word’s history extends 400 years before that usage. At its beginning, the term (similar to “divert”) meant “to turn one’s attention toward.” Over time this definition evolved to mean “making reference to a subject in speech or writing.”

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WORD OF THE DAY: Couchsurfing

[/kouCHˈsərfiNG/] Part of speech: Verb Origin: English Definitions: 1. Sleeping on strangers’ couches while on vacation 2. Staying at a series of different places Examples of Couchsurfing in a sentence “Many college students go couchsurfing while studying abroad.” “With an adventurous spirit and a tight budget, she was no stranger to couchsurfing.” About Couchsurfing Originating with the company of the same name, couchsurfing is a free alternative to hotels and hostels that’s especially popular among younger travelers. Hosts allow guests to sleep on their couch (or, in some cases, guest room) for free, all in the name of kindness. Did you Know? The term “couchsurfing” was coined by the founders of the company of the same name, which formed in 2003.

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