Creating Strategic Marketing Success

In this episode of “Uncontested Investing,” host Nate Zielinski sits down with John Seroka, President of Seroka Marketing and PR, a firm with over 37 years of experience in the mortgage and private lending industry. John shares insights into his career, the importance of family legacy, and how his company helps private lenders and real estate professionals elevate their marketing strategies. From personal anecdotes to professional advice, this episode is packed with valuable information for anyone looking to improve their marketing game in the real estate sector. Key Takeaways Continuous learning and staying updated with industry trends are crucial for success. Building a strong, optimized website is essential for digital marketing. Networking and maintaining professional relationships can significantly impact your career. Balancing work with personal life and health is vital for long-term success. Resources Learn more about Seroka Marketing and their services at https://www.seroka.com. Connect with Us: Email: podcast@rcncapital.com Website: RCN Capital www.rcncapital.com Website: REI INK Magazine www.rei-ink.com

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Offerpad Appoints Peter Knag as Chief Financial Officer

Seasoned executive with 20+ years of finance leadership at WarnerMedia, TBS, and AT&T Offerpad Solutions Inc., a leading tech-enabled platform for residential real estate, announced the appointment of Peter Knag as its new Chief Financial Officer, effective June 5, 2024. Knag brings a proven track record of success and deep financial acumen to Offerpad, having excelled in senior financial leadership roles across the media, telecommunications, technology, and finance sectors. Knag is the former Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer for Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., the parent company of CNN, TNT, and TBS. He joined Turner in June 2018 following AT&T’s acquisition of Time Warner. As Executive Vice President of WarnerMedia Finance, a role Knag held from 2020 to 2022, he was responsible for Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A), treasury, financial reporting, global procurement, corporate development, risk management and other key business areas. Prior to his tenure at Turner, Knag held key leadership roles at AT&T Inc., where he demonstrated his expertise in financial strategy, corporate development, and relationship management on a global scale. Throughout his distinguished career at AT&T, which began in 1999, Knag played a pivotal role in driving the company’s financial success and growth, executing transactions exceeding $200 billion in total value. His experience spans a wide range of financial disciplines, including strategic planning, financial analysis, and investment management. Knag began his career in investment banking, having worked for Lehman Brothers and First Albany Corporation. He has also served as a board member for Central European Media Enterprises, then a NASDAQ listed media company, and Vogel Alcove. He continues to serve on the board of TAP Advisors, a boutique advisory and investment banking firm. “We are thrilled to welcome Peter Knag to the Offerpad team,” said Brian Bair, Chairman and CEO of Offerpad. “His extensive background in finance and corporate development, along with his proven leadership in business operations and complex transactions makes him an invaluable addition to our executive team. We look forward to his contributions as we continue to drive growth and profitability at Offerpad.” Knag expressed his enthusiasm about joining Offerpad, stating, “I am excited to join at such a dynamic time for the company. I look forward to working with the talented team to continue to grow and diversify Offerpad’s platform offerings and drive efficiency, scale and profitability in the business.” Learn more at www.offerpad.com.

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Redfin Reports Home Prices Hit Another Record High, Pushing Pending Sales Down 4%

Prices keep rising because this spring’s inventory is lower than usual. The sliver of good news for buyers is that mortgage rates have declined slightly The median U.S. home-sale price hit a record $387,600 during the four weeks ending May 19, up 4% from a year earlier. That’s according to a new report from Redfin (redfin.com), the technology-powered real estate brokerage. Weekly average mortgage rates dipped to 7.02% from a five-month high of 7.22% at the start of the month, bringing the median monthly housing payment to $2,854, roughly $20 shy of April’s all-time high. High housing costs pushed pending home sales down 4.2% year over year, the biggest decline in three months (except the prior 4-week period, when sales declined 4.4%). Prices keep rising despite declining sales because there aren’t enough homes on the market: New listings are up about 8% year over year, but inventory remains lower than typical spring levels. Many homeowners are staying put because they would rather hold onto their relatively low mortgage rate than move up to a bigger and/or better home. “Move-up buyers feel stuck because they’re ready for their next house, but it just doesn’t make financial sense to sell with current interest rates so high,” said Sam Brinton, a Redfin Premier agent in Salt Lake City, UT. “The homeowners listing right now are often doing so because they need to: One of my clients is selling because of a family emergency, and another couple is selling because they had a baby and simply don’t have enough room. Buyers should take note that many of today’s sellers are motivated; if a home doesn’t have other offers on the table, offer under asking price and/or ask for concessions because many sellers are willing to negotiate.” Leading indicators Indicators of homebuying demand and activity   Value (if applicable) Recent change Year-over-year change Source Daily average 30-year fixed mortgage rate 7.09% (May 22) Up from 6.99% a week earlier, but down from a 5-month high of 7.52% 4 weeks earlier Up from 6.95% Mortgage News Daily Weekly average 30-year fixed mortgage rate 7.02% (week ending May 16) Down from 5-month high of 7.22% 2 weeks earlier Up from 6.39% Freddie Mac Mortgage-purchase applications (seasonally adjusted)   Declined 1% from a week earlier (as of week ending May 17) Down 11% Mortgage Bankers Association Redfin Homebuyer Demand Index (seasonally adjusted)   Essentially unchanged from a month earlier (as of week ending May 19) Down 11% Redfin Homebuyer Demand Index, a measure of requests for tours and other homebuying services from Redfin agents Touring activity   Up 31% from the start of the year (as of May 19) At this time last year, it was up 22% from the start of 2023 ShowingTime, a home touring technology company Google searches for “home for sale”   Down 8% from a month earlier (as of May 19) Down 18% Google Trends Key housing-market data U.S. highlights: Four weeks ending May 19, 2024Redfin’s national metrics include data from 400+ U.S. metro areas, and is based on homes listed and/or sold during the period. Weekly housing-market data goes back through 2015. Subject to revision.   Four weeks ending May 19, 2024 Year-over-year change Notes Median sale price $387,600 4% All-time high Median asking price $420,250 6.6%  All-time high Median monthly mortgage payment $2,854 at a 7.02% mortgage rate 10.5% $18 below all-time high set during the 4 weeks ending April 28 Pending sales 89,303 -4.2% Biggest decline since 4 weeks ending Feb. 25 (except the prior 4-week period, when sales declined 4.4%) New listings 102,671 8.5%   Active listings 901,194 14.8%   Months of supply 3.2 +0.6 pts. 4 to 5 months of supply is considered balanced, with a lower number indicating seller’s market conditions Share of homes off market in two weeks 44.9% Down from 49%   Median days on market 33 +3 days   Share of homes sold above list price 31.3% Down from 34%   Share of homes with a price drop 6.4% +2 pts. Highest level since Nov. 2022 Average sale-to-list price ratio 99.5% -0.1 pts.   Metro-level highlights: Four weeks ending May 19, 2024Redfin’s metro-level data includes the 50 most populous U.S. metros. Select metros may be excluded from time to time to ensure data accuracy.   Metros with biggest year-over-year increases Metros with biggest year-over-year decreases Notes Median sale price Anaheim, CA (20.1%)Detroit (16.9%)San Jose, CA (12.9%)Oakland, CA (12.5%) West Palm Beach, FL (12%) San Antonio (-1%) Fort Worth, TX (-0.6%)   Decreased in 2 metros Pending sales San Jose, CA (18.4%)San Francisco (8%)San Diego (4.3%)Newark, NJ (3.6%)Columbus, OH (3.3%) West Palm Beach, FL (-15.3%)Atlanta (-14.9%)Houston (-14.5%)Phoenix (-12.3%)Providence, RI (-11.6%) Increased in 10 metros New listings San Jose, CA (36.7%)Montgomery County, PA (26.2%)Phoenix (26.1%)Seattle (21.2%)San Diego (21%) Atlanta (-8.1%)Chicago (-4.9%)Detroit (-3.9%)Virginia Beach, VA (-2.6%)Newark, NJ (-2%)Warren, MI (-1.8%) Decreased in 6 metros To view the full report, including charts, please visit:https://www.redfin.com/news/housing-market-update-pending-sales-fall-prices-increase

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ICE First Look at Mortgage Performance

Continued Improvement in April Leads to Fewest Serious Delinquencies in 18+ Years Intercontinental Exchange, Inc., a leading global provider of technology and data, reports the following “first look” at April 2024 month-end mortgage performance statistics derived from its loan-level database representing the majority of the national mortgage market. Data as of April 30, 2024 Total U.S. loan delinquency rate (loans 30 or more days past due, but not in foreclosure): 3.09% Month-over-month change: -3.28% Year-over-year change: -6.63%   Total U.S. foreclosure pre-sale inventory rate: 0.37% Month-over-month change: -3.31% Year-over-year change: -16.42%   Total U.S. foreclosure starts: 26,000 Month-over-month change -0.83% Year-over-year change: 4.01%   Monthly prepayment rate (SMM): 0.52% Month-over-month change: 8.39% Year-over-year change: 18.83%   Foreclosure sales: 5,900 Month-over-month change: 1.55% Year-over-year change: – 7.87%   Number of properties that are 30 or more days past due, but not in foreclosure: ​ 1,658,000 Month-over-month change: -53,000 Year-over-year change: -88,000   Number of properties that are 90 or more days past due, but not in foreclosure: 417,000 Month-over-month change: -17,000 Year-over-year change: -84,000   Number of properties in foreclosure pre-sale inventory: 199,000 Month-over-month change: -6,000 Year-over-year change: -35,000   Number of properties that are 30 or more days past due or in foreclosure: 1,857,000 Month-over-month change: -59,000 Year-over-year change: -123,000 Top 5 States by Non-Current* Percentage Mississippi: 7.48% Louisiana: 7.24% Alabama: 5.38% West Virginia: 4.81% Arkansas: 4.79%     Bottom 5 States by Non-Current* Percentage Oregon: 2.02% Montana: 1.94% Idaho: 1.92% Washington: 1.89% Colorado: 1.80%   Top 5 States by 90+ Days Delinquent Percentage Mississippi: 1.92% Louisiana: 1.71% Alabama: 1.42% Arkansas: 1.21% Georgia: 1.10%   Top 5 States by 12-Month Change in Non-Current* Percentage New Hampshire: -16.06% Alaska: -14.35% Rhode Island: -13.46% District of Columbia: -13.36% Kentucky: – 13.03%     Bottom 5 States by 12-Month Change in Non-Current* Percentage South Dakota: 0.37% Louisiana: 0.08% Arizona: -0.12% Arkansas: -0.83% Tennessee: -1.56%     *Non-current totals combine foreclosures and delinquencies as a percent of active loans in that state. Notes: 1) Totals are extrapolated based on ICE’s McDash loan-level database of mortgage assets. 2) All whole numbers are rounded to the nearest thousand, except foreclosure starts and sales, which are rounded to the nearest hundred. The company will provide a more in-depth review of this data in its monthly Mortgage Monitor report, which includes an analysis of data supplemented by detailed charts and graphs that reflect trend and point-in-time observations. The Mortgage Monitor report will be available online at https://www.icemortgagetechnology.com/resources/data-reports by June 3, 2024. For more information about gaining access to ICE’s loan-level database, please send an email to Mortgage.Monitor@bkfs.com. Source: Intercontinental Exchange

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Realtor.com® April Rental Report

National Rents Drop Again, But Three Midwest Markets Surge to Record Highs Rents fell again last month, with particularly big savings for renters in Austin, Texas; Las Vegas; and San Francisco compared to when those markets peaked, according to the Realtor.com® Rental Report. Still, some areas with low unemployment and a slower pace of new home construction saw record-high rents that could continue to rise into the summer months. The median asking rent nationally for 0-2 bedroom units fell by -0.7% from April of last year, to $1,723, and declined across all size categories. It was the ninth straight year-over-year drop, though the pace of rent declines has slowed. Rents are just $33 (-1.9%) below their August 2022 peak. “In the ever-fluctuating real estate market, renters will find that trends vary significantly by location,” said Danielle Hale, Chief Economist at Realtor.com®. “Renters in some historically expensive areas are seeing lower prices compared to what they would have paid at the peak of the market, while many relatively affordable markets are witnessing a continued rise in rental costs to new highs, and the scales could tip to even more markets later this summer.” Renters in some South and West markets see biggest savings; Austin leads the wayThe median asking rent for Austin, Texas in April was $1,494, which is down $195 (-11.5%) from its September 2022 peak. That’s the largest percent savings, compared to the market’s peak, among the 50 biggest metro markets. The decline was partly driven by an influx of new multi-family homes into the Southern market, which has helped to push Austin’s rental vacancy rate higher. Rents in Austin have been declining month-over-month since June 2023. Still, April’s median asking rent in Austin is $260 (21.1%) more than it was five years ago, before the pandemic. The metro with the second-biggest rent savings since the peak was Las Vegas, where renters could save $184 on average by renting a typical property today, down -11.1% from the June 2022 high. And in San Francisco, a typical renter could save $303 per month, down -9.9% from the July 2022 peak. Three Midwest metros hit record-high rents and more could followBy contrast, in parts of the Midwest, rents are climbing. The median asking rents hit their highest levels since March 2019 in three Midwest cities: Indianapolis (up 4.5% annually to $1,334), Milwaukee (up 3.8% to $1,671), and Minneapolis (up 2.5% to $1,529). Driving higher rents are below-average unemployment rates and the slow pace of new multi-home construction. Current rental prices in Cincinnati, Cleveland and Chicago are all slightly below peak but could hit their own record highs this summer if the recent growth trend continues. While rents in many Midwest metro areas are generally more affordable than in cities in other parts of the country, in some key markets renters are facing increasing affordability challenges. Rents decline across all size categoriesOn average, rents for units of all sizes continued their months-long trend downward in April. Studios saw the biggest drop, with the median asking rent nationwide falling by 1.7% on a year-over-year basis, to $1,443. That’s down -3.2% from its October 2022 peak but 18.9% higher than five years ago. Median rent for one-bedroom units fell -1.4% to $1,601, the eleventh straight month of annual declines. And the median rent for two-bedroom units fell by -0.7% to $1,916. That’s -1.9% lower than its August 2022 peak but 24.4% more than five years ago. Media contact:Sara Wiskerchen, press@realtor.com SOURCE Realtor.com

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OPPORTUNITY ZONE HOME PRICES MIXED BUT STILL KEEPING UP WITH NATIONWIDE PRICE TRENDS

Median Home Values Rise During First Quarter of 2024 in Only Half of Opportunity Zones Targeted for Economic Redevelopment Around U.S.;  But Price Trends Inside Zones Again Reflect National Market Patterns; By Some Measures, Opportunity Zone Changes Surpass Nationwide Gains ATTOM, a leading curator of land, property, and real estate data, released its first-quarter 2024 report analyzing qualified low-income Opportunity Zones targeted by Congress for economic redevelopment in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. In this report, ATTOM looked at 3,512 zones around the United States with sufficient data to analyze, meaning they had at least five home sales in the first quarter of 2024. The report found that median single-family home and condo prices increased from the fourth quarter of 2023 to the first quarter of 2024 in just 49 percent of Opportunity Zones around the country. But they were still up annually in almost two-thirds of Opportunity Zones with enough data to measure. Those trends, in and around low-income neighborhoods where the federal government offers tax breaks to spur economic revival, continued a long-term pattern of home values inside Opportunity Zones moving alongside broader nationwide shifts for at least the last three years. The mixed first-quarter price patterns hit harder in the very lowest-priced areas, with declining values posing a warning sign in those markets. Nevertheless, the overall picture inside Opportunity Zones revealed ongoing measures of economic strength, or limited weakness, inside some of the country’s most distressed communities compared to other markets around the country. That scenario has remained in place even as a decade-long housing market boom has slowed in Opportunity Zones and elsewhere, with relatively modest price increases over the past year. By one key measure, Opportunity Zones price trends even showed continued signs again of doing somewhat better than the nation as a whole during the early months of 2024. For example, changes in typical home values across more than half of Opportunity Zones were better than nationwide price movements both quarterly and annually. “Another quarter, same result. That’s the takeaway yet again inside Opportunity Zones around the U.S., where home prices still lag far behind national numbers, but gains and losses mostly keep tracking overall market patterns,” said Rob Barber, CEO for ATTOM. “Clearly, there are exceptions, especially at the lowest end of the price scale. Nevertheless, the latest data shows Opportunity Zone housing markets continuing to attract considerable interest among home buyers pushed out of higher-priced areas in a market with very limited supplies of homes for sale. That again points to the kind of economic viability needed to lure investors who may want to take advantage of the redevelopment incentives aimed at revitalizing those communities.” Opportunity Zones are defined in the Tax Act legislation as census tracts in or alongside low-income neighborhoods that meet various criteria for redevelopment in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and U.S. territories. Census tracts, as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau, cover areas that have 1,200 to 8,000 residents, with an average of about 4,000 people. Amid economic limitations, most Opportunity Zones again had typical home values that fell well below those in other markets around the nation in the first quarter of 2024. Median first-quarter prices inside 78 percent of the zones were less the U.S. median of $330,000. That was about the same portion as in earlier periods over the past three years. In addition, median prices remained under $200,000 in about half the zones. High-level findings from the report: Media Contact:Megan Huntmegan.hunt@attomdata.com SOURCE ATTOM

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