October 2024 – Page 4

U.S. FORECLOSURE ACTIVITY DECREASES IN Q3 2024

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Foreclosure Starts Down 10 Percent from Last Year; Bank Repossessions Down 12 Percent from Last Year ATTOM, a leading curator of land, property data, and real estate analytics, released its Q3 2024 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report, which shows a total of 87,108 U.S. properties with a foreclosure filing during the third quarter of 2024, down 2 percent from the previous quarter and down 13 percent from a year ago. The report also shows a total of 29,668 U.S. properties with foreclosure filings in September 2024, down 2 percent from the previous month and down 19 percent from a year ago. “While we are seeing a decrease in foreclosure starts and repossessions, it’s crucial to remain vigilant, as any economic disruptions or changes in interest rates could shift the current trend,” said Rob Barber, CEO of ATTOM. “Moving forward, we anticipate foreclosure levels will stay relatively low, but there could be localized increases in areas struggling with affordability or other market pressures.” Foreclosure starts decrease nationwide A total of 62,380 U.S. properties started the foreclosure process in Q3 2024, down less than 1 percent from the previous quarter and down 10 percent from a year ago. States that had 1,000 or more foreclosures starts in Q3 2024 and saw the greatest annual decrease included, North Carolina (down 44 percent); Georgia (down 29 percent); Maryland (down 22 percent); New Jersey (down 20 percent); and South Carolina (down 19 percent). U.S. Foreclosure Starts Those major metros with a population of 200,000 or more that had the greatest number of foreclosures starts in Q3 2024 included, New York, New York (3,776 foreclosure starts); Chicago, Illinois (3,231 foreclosure starts); Los Angeles, CA (2,166 foreclosure starts); Miami, FL (2,142 foreclosure starts); and Houston, Texas (1,791 foreclosure starts). Highest foreclosure rates in Illinois, Nevada, and Florida Nationwide one in every 1,618 housing units had a foreclosure filing in Q3 2024. States with the highest foreclosure rates were Illinois (one in every 904 housing units with a foreclosure filing); Nevada (one in every 922 housing units); Florida (one in every 971 housing units); Delaware (one in every 1,060 housing units); and South Carolina (one in every 1,069 housing units). Among 224 metropolitan statistical areas with a population of at least 200,000, those with the highest foreclosure rates in Q3 2024 were Lakeland, Florida (one in 610 housing units); Provo, Utah (one in every 647 housing units); Macon, Georgia (one in every 649 housing units); Columbia, South Carolina (one in every 663 housing units); and Atlantic City, New Jersey (one in every 766 housing units). U.S. Historical Total Foreclosure Activity Other major metros with a population of at least 1 million and foreclosure rates in the top 15 highest nationwide, include Chicago, Illinois (one in every 775 housing units); Las Vegas, Nevada (one in every 796 housing units); Cleveland, Ohio (one in every 819 housing units); Orlando, Florida (one in every 859 housing units); and Riverside, California (one in every 867 housing units). Bank repossessions decrease 12 percent from last year Lenders repossessed 8,795 U.S. properties through foreclosure (REO) in Q3 2024, up 1 percent from the previous quarter but down 12 percent from a year ago. U.S. Completed Foreclosures (REOs) Those states that had the greatest number of REOs in Q3 2024 were California (852 REOs); Pennsylvania (715 REOs); New York (670 REOs); Illinois (668 REOs); and Michigan (559 REOs). Average time to foreclose increases 6 percent from last year Properties foreclosed in Q3 2024 had been in the foreclosure process for an average of 815 days. This remains the same from the previous quarter but represents a 6 percent increase from the same time last year, continuing an upward trajectory since Q3 2023. Average Days to Complete Foreclosure States with the longest average foreclosure timelines for homes foreclosed in Q3 2024 were Louisiana (3,520 days); Hawaii (2,531 days); New York (2,087 days); Rhode Island (1,880 days); and Georgia (1,876 days). States with the shortest average foreclosure timelines for homes foreclosed in Q3 2024 were New Hampshire (165 days); Minnesota (172 days); Texas (181 days); Michigan (189 days); and Montana (248 days). September 2024 Foreclosure Activity High-Level Takeaways Media Contact: Megan Hunt megan.hunt@attomdata.com Data and Report Licensing: datareports@attomdata.com

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Third Newsweek Award in 2024 Recognizes Cornerstone Building Brands’ Commitment to Fostering a Positive and Supportive Work Environment Cornerstone Building Brands, Inc. (“Cornerstone Building Brands”), a leading manufacturer of exterior building products in North America, has been named one of America’s Greatest Workplaces for 2024 by Newsweek. Compiled in partnership with market data research firm Plant-A Insights, the list is established by conducting a large-scale employer study based on more than 1.5 million comprehensive company reviews from approximately 250,000 employees in America, providing insight into compensation and benefits, training and career progression, work-life balance and company culture.1 “We’re honored to be recognized as one of America’s greatest workplaces for our ongoing efforts to foster a positive, supportive work environment where our employees can thrive,” said Rose Lee, President and CEO of Cornerstone Building Brands.“This award exemplifies our commitment to the shared values and behaviors our team members demonstrate every day that not only drive value for our customers, but also make Cornerstone Building Brands an employer of choice.” This recognition comes at an exciting time for Cornerstone Building Brands as the company continues to build on its core values – Safety, Integrity and Inclusion – and the behaviors and mindsets – Customer-Centric, Interconnected and Continuous Improvement – that are the foundation of its culture. As a result of its efforts, Cornerstone Building Brands has seen a reduction in voluntary employee turnover in every segment of its business year-to-date.2 By remaining deeply committed to engaging and motivating its team members, the company is well positioned to continue developing and maintaining a workplace that attracts top talent and nurtures their potential. “Finding a great workplace is an important decision that needs to factor in pay, respect, training and advancement, as well as healthy work-life balance,” said Nancy Cooper, Global Editor in Chief at Newsweek. “Newsweek and market-data research firm Plant-A Insights are proud to publish ’America’s Greatest Workplaces 2024,’ the second annual ranking that highlights companies which are committed to offering a positive and supportive working environment.” In addition to being honored among America’s greatest workplaces, Cornerstone Building Brands was named as one of America’s Most Responsible Companies 2024 and one of Americas Greatest Workplaces for Diversity 2024 by Newsweek. 1 Study methodology involved an assessment of publicly accessible data, discussions / interviews with HR professionals, and large-scale confidential online surveys conducted among employees working for U.S. companies that employ more than 500 employees in 2023 and that employ more than 1,000 employees in 2022. Additional methodology details can be found here. 2 Turnover reduction based on comparison of January to August 2024 data versus full-year 2023 data. ABOUT CORNERSTONE BUILDING BRANDS Cornerstone Building Brands is a leading manufacturer of exterior building products for residential and low-rise non-residential buildings in North America. Headquartered in Cary, N.C., we serve residential and commercial customers across the new construction and the Repair & Remodel (R&R) markets. Our market-leading portfolio of products spans vinyl windows, vinyl siding, stone veneer, metal roofing, metal wall systems and metal accessories. Cornerstone Building Brands’ broad, multi-channel distribution platform and expansive national footprint includes approximately 18,000 employees at manufacturing, distribution and office locations throughout North America. Corporate stewardship and Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) responsibility are embedded in our culture. We are committed to contributing positively to the communities where we live, work and play. For more information, visit us at cornerstonebuildingbrands.com. Contacts Gia Oei, Vice President of Corporate Communications and Cultureresponse@cornerstone-bb.com

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Total insured loss estimated at $10.5 to $17.5 billion CoreLogic®, a leading global property information, analytics and data-enabled solutions provider, announced its updated and final damage estimates for Hurricane Helene. According to this new and final data analysis, total flood and wind losses are between $30.5 billion and $47.5 billion. This estimate includes wind loss as well as insured and uninsured storm surge and inland flood loss for residential and commercial properties across 16 states. See Table 1 below for a detailed breakdown of peril loss estimates. “When intense storm surge and flooding events, like Hurricane Helene, reach regions that are infrequently affected by natural hazards, we can expect to see damage to homes without flood insurance coverage. The fact that so much damage was concentrated outside the Special Flood Hazard Areas (SFHAs) makes it challenging to realize the full extent of impact to uninsured homeowners,” explains Jon Schneyer, Director of Catastrophe Response at CoreLogic. “Thankfully FEMA’s NFIP is expected to provide up to $6.5 billion of insurance for the recovery efforts, which will help bring much needed recovery aid to the affected areas.” Table 1: Hurricane Helene Insured and Uninsured Wind and Flood Losses Peril Industry Loss (in billions) Wind $4.5 – $6.5 Flood1 $6.0 – $11.0 Private Insured $1.5 – $4.5 NFIP $4.5 – $6.5 Total Insured Wind and Flood $10.5 – $17.5 Uninsured Flood $20.0 – $30.0 Total Wind and Flood (insured + uninsured): $30.5 – $47.5 1 Losses paid by private insurers and the NFIP for recovery. Includes both inland flood and storm surge. Source: CoreLogic, 2024 More Information on Damage Estimates Insured loss represents the amount insurers and NFIP will pay to cover damages. Unlike wind damage, which is covered by a standard homeowners policy, flood is a separate coverage which is not mandatory outside the designated SFHAs. The analysis includes damage to both buildings and their contents of residential, commercial, and industrial structures including a time element component and does not include broader economic loss from the storm. The losses also include damage to automobiles. Damage to personal marine craft, offshore infrastructure, governmental structures, and infrastructure (like roads and bridges) are excluded. Visit the CoreLogic Hazard HQ Command Central™ to get more details about the storm characteristics and data insights for Hurricane Helene. Source: CoreLogic

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New study pinpoints affordable market challenges while offering increased transparency The need for additional affordable housing inventory is a foundational issue for the market, a new Yardi® Matrix Research Bulletin on the affordable housing sector shows. With an increasing number of households being designated as “cost burdened” across earning brackets, policymakers are pushing for more affordable stock, with an expected 69,600 units set to come online in 2024. A multi-year peak for the sector is anticipated with the 70,500 units projected for delivery in 2025. However, a looming slowdown in new inventory after 2025 could exacerbate the problem. The primary challenge facing governments and renters alike is that market rate housing is not competitive with affordable housing in many of the country’s major metros, including markets such as Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Boston, Miami and Northern New Jersey. In San Fracisco (where the market-rate average is $3,028 and fully affordable average is $1,982) or Boston (where the market-rate average is $2,801 and fully affordable average is $1,819), there is a big gap between market-rate and fully affordable rents. Conversely, at least 90 percent of market-rate stock is competitive with affordable properties in seven small markets, including South Dakota; Wichita, Kan.; Huntsville, Ala.; Amarillo, Texas; Des Moines, Iowa; Fayetteville, Ark.; and Omaha, Neb. The Yardi Matrix study is based on a dataset containing over 3.3 million units in 20,000 fully affordable housing properties. These properties are owned and operated by both private sector entities and non-profit organizations. The study compared the average maximum allowable rent of fully affordable units owned by private entities with the average advertised rent of market-rate units, broken into four levels of apartment quality. Review the levels and income required for affordability of each type in the report. In addition to the competitiveness disparity, supply growth limitations and composition of total housing stock are additional affordable housing challenges. However, every market is unique and analysis of the issues on a broad scale comes with its own caveats and challenges. “We believe that this analysis represents a valuable first step to compare the differences between market-rate and affordable rents and to understand why some markets are more successful at producing housing that meets the demands of households with limited incomes. Far from being the last word on the topic, we view this as a beginning of what we hope is an ongoing effort to study numbers that are now available through the new Matrix database,” said Paul Fiorilla, director of research for Yardi Matrix. Yardi Matrix offers the industry’s most comprehensive market intelligence tool for investment professionals, equity investors, lenders and property managers who underwrite and manage investments in commercial real estate. Yardi Matrix covers multifamily, affordable housing, student housing, vacant land, industrial, office, retail and self storage property types. Email matrix@yardi.com, call 480-663-1149 or visit yardimatrix.com to learn more. About Yardi Celebrating its 40-year anniversary in 2024, Yardi® develops industry-leading software for all types and sizes of real estate companies across the world. With over 9,500 employees, Yardi is working with our clients to drive significant innovation in the real estate industry. For more information on how Yardi is Energized for Tomorrow, visit yardi.com.

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Investors predict that housing market conditions will continue to improve, and that Kamala Harris will be the victor in the 2024 Presidential election Real estate investor sentiment continued to improve, increasing by eight points from the previous quarter, according to the Fall 2024 RCN Capital/CJ Patrick Company Investor Sentiment Index™. Sixty-eight percent of investors viewed today’s market as better or much better than it was a year ago, compared to only 13% who felt it was worse or much worse. Investors were equally bullish on where the market is headed, with 71% expecting it to continue to improve, while only 9% expected it to decline – the highest percentage of positive responses and lowest percentage of negative responses since the inception of the RCN Investor Sentiment Survey. The RCN Capital/CJ Patrick Company Investor Sentiment Index™ (ISI) tracks the pulse of real estate investors across the country and gauges their market outlook based on their responses to four key questions: “Investor sentiment is almost twice as positive today as it was in the third quarter of 2023, and they’re even more optimistic about the future,” said RCN Capital CEO Jeffrey Tesch. “It seems likely that investors are reacting to improving market dynamics – financing costs declining, the inventory or homes for sale increasing dramatically, and home price appreciation slowing down, but still rising.” Cost and Availability of Insurance a Growing Problem The Fall 2024 Investor Sentiment Survey from RCN Capital, conducted by market intelligence firm CJ Patrick Company, again highlighted growing concerns among investors about increasing insurance costs or the unavailability of insurance in markets subject to frequent extreme weather events like Hurricane Helene. Almost 80% of the respondents said that concerns about the cost and availability of insurance was a factor in their decision-making about investing in real estate. This was more prevalent among flippers (82.9%) than among rental property investors (69.4%). This could be because insurance issues have caused more flippers (73.3%) than rental investors (45%) to miss out on a deal. In states where extreme weather events have caused insurance rates to soar and prompted some insurance companies to exit the state, the responses were even more telling. Almost 97% of California investors and over 93% of Florida flippers said insurance issues were a factor in their decision-making. Similarly, over 85% of California rental property investors and 90% of Florida rental investors said the same. California flippers were more likely to have missed out on a deal due to insurance matters than rental investors: 87.5% of flippers lost a deal compared to 50% of rental investors. On the other hand, 60% of both flippers and rental investors missed out on a deal due to insurance problems in Florida. Squatters also appear to be a problem that won’t go away: over three-quarters of respondents – 77% – said that squatters were a problem in their area, with 43.6% experiencing the problem personally. The problem appears to be much more severe among flippers (who probably buy more properties that are supposed to be vacant) than rental investors. Almost 88% of flippers cited squatters as a problem compared to 54.9% of rental investors. The issue is also apparently more commonplace in California than Florida, although it’s bigger in both states than it is nationally: 93.8% of California flippers and 70% of California rental investors said squatting is a problem compared to 86.6% and 60% respectively for Florida investors. Flippers More Optimistic Than Rental Investors – but More Concerned About a Recession Fix-and-Flip investors were significantly more positive about market conditions than were rental property investors. Over 80% of flippers believe that market conditions have improved over the past year, and more than 83% expect things to continue to improve. Conversely, under 47% of rental property investors believe that today’s market is better than last year’s, and about 51% expect conditions to improve over the next 6 months. It’s worth noting, however, that both responses from rental investors were significantly higher than they were in the Summer 2024 survey. Investors overwhelmingly believe that home prices will continue to rise: 70.6% of all respondents, 74.2% of flippers, and 58.5% of rental investors agree. Most also believe that the country is likely to enter a recession in 2024, with 63.2% of all respondents answering affirmatively. But there’s a stark difference between flippers and rental investors in this category, with only 38.7% of rental investors calling for a recession compared to 74.7% of flippers. Harris Seen as the Likely Victor in Presidential Race The investors surveyed predict a victory in November for Kamala Harris by a fairly wide margin, 51.4% compared to 40.5%. When asked which candidate would create the best environment for real estate investing, Harris again was cited more often, 47.2% to 39.2%. There were some surprises, however, in the underlying data. Investors in California expect a Trump victory in November: Flippers by 62.1% to 34.5%, and rental investors by 70% to 30%. Florida investors are split: Flippers expect a Harris victory 60% vs. 33.3%, while rental investors predict a Trump win 65% to 30%. Nationally, flippers appear more confident in Harris creating the better investing environment than Trump by 56.9% to 32.6%. Florida flippers have almost identical expectations – 60% to 33.3% – but California flippers cite Harris by a narrower margin – 50% to 40%. Rental property investors across the country are more favorable to the former President, with 45% of the respondents saying Trump would create the best investing environment compared to 39.6% for Harris. Only 25% of Florida’s rental investors believe Harris would create the best environment compared to 55% for Trump. Rental investors from Harris’ home state of California say Trump would create the better environment for investing 75% to 25%. And while rental investors nationally give the election to Harris over Trump by a narrow 50% to 45.5%, Trump is deemed the likely winner by rental investors in both Florida (65% to 30%) and California (70% to 30%). “Survey respondents told us that a Harris Administration could create a more robust environment for investing, despite some proposals – like raising the capital gains tax – and policies being pursued by the Biden Harris Administration, such as rent control and limiting tax benefits for owners of 50 or more rental properties, that seem to be inherently anti-investor,” said Rick Sharga,

Madison Trust Company

by Carole VanSickle Ellis
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Making Control, Versatility Easy for Self-Directed Investors by Carole VanSickle Ellis In 2009, the real estate market was hovering near the bottom of the post-housing-crash slump of the mid-2000s, and Madison Trust Company CEO, president, and co-founder Daniel Gleich was focused on helping his father diversify his retirement investments. In the short-term, this was something of a challenging experience, as one investment manager after another informed Gleich retirement assets were “limited” to stocks and bonds. Gleich, a real estate developer who was well aware of the massive, positive potential in the coming decades’ property markets, was undeterred. The long-term result of his mission to challenge what was, at the time, standard operating procedure for retirement investments, has been life-changing for more than 20,000 of Madison Trust Company’s clients today. “When I heard these financial advisors say, ‘Retirement money is limited to stocks and bonds,’ I just thought to myself, ‘That doesn’t make any sense!’” Gleich recalled. “I understood that we would have to pay taxes on the money if we wanted to move it and diversify, but why couldn’t I invest it where I wanted to?” Soon, he had discovered a relatively unknown vehicle for the time, the self-directed individual retirement account (IRA), and one of its most valuable features, checkbook control. From that point forward, Gleich never looked back. He had found something that would change his father’s retirement investing and that of many, many others over the next 15 years. “It worked beautifully,” Gleich said, “and I was telling friends and neighbors all about self-directed IRAs with checkbook control. After I had set the checkbook control structure up for a few other people, I spoke to one of my partners, Mervyn Klein, future co-founder and shareholder at Madison Trust Company, and we agreed there was a huge opportunity.” They, alongside E. Brian Finkelstein, shareholder and chairman, first opened Broad Financial, an IRA LLC facilitation firm, which worked with a third-party IRA custodian to help investors open checkbook IRAs. By 2012, the founders had realized, as Gleich put it, “the level of customer service that the custodian was offering was not nearly on par with what we were offering.” With an eye toward offering clients a “seamless transaction, all in-house,” the group began the two-year process of meeting with regulators and becoming a trust company. In 2014, the doors of Madison Trust Company opened for the first time. “We wanted to make sure people could invest their retirement money and have more control over those investments,” Gleich said. “There are millions of people out there who could use this investment vehicle and should know about it. At Madison Trust Company, our goal is to help them make that happen.” It was a daunting task, particularly given that around the same time Madison Trust opened for business, the U.S. government actually started work on a report focusing on the dearth of information available on self-directed IRAs and calling for the retirement industry and the IRS to provide more guidance on the topic. That report would be published three years later in 2017. Prioritizing Investor Education & Cutting-Edge Strategy While the federal government began its own research on educational materials available to self-directed investors in the 2010s, Madison Trust Company began a carefully researched educational outreach of its own that would, ultimately, enable the company to grow to the size it remains today. “We spend a lot of time working with our compliance team, consulting the IRS website, and making sure the content team is familiar with all of Madison Trust’s initiatives to ensure that all of our educational material is informative, accurate, and digestible,” observed Brianna Avillo, Madison Trust’s marketing manager. Avillo’s team spearheads content creation for all educational resources on the Madison Trust website, including animated “explainer” videos, infographics, educational webinars, written material, and beyond. “We have an investor-first approach, so our goal is to always make things as easy as possible for our clients,” Avillo said. She explained that for Madison Trust, making things easy for investors means making operations within the organization smooth and pleasant as well. “One of our mottos is that happy employees lead to happy clients,” she said. Gleich elaborated, “If we, as owners, take good care of our employees, and our employees are happy, they will take care of our clients, and our clients will be happy. If our clients have a smooth experience, our shareholders are happy, and the loop continues to go around.” He cited the company’s 900-plus Google reviews with an average star rating of 4.9 out of 5 stars as evidence of the success of this policy and the company’s clients in their self-directed investing endeavors. “If people can successfully self-direct their retirement account, they will have a richer retirement, and Madison Trust aims to provide clients with a pleasant journey getting there,” Gleich said. “The key is providing investors with the opportunity to invest in what they know and believe in.” Dana Udumulla, who serves as investments manager for Madison Trust, said her team relies heavily on the education element provided by the company when she travels on its behalf. “We not only have an education-first approach with our current clients and investors; we are always trying to educate wherever we go,” Udumulla said. “There is a huge retirement crisis looming right now in America, and a lot of people are experiencing anxiety and insecurity when it comes to their finances. By providing education and insight that is simple and straight to the point, we make it possible for anyone to become educated on self-directed IRAs and begin gaining control of their situation.” Walking with Investors Creatively & Constructively Customer care and guidance are crucial elements at Madison Trust Company, Udumulla said, explaining that unlike many other SDIRA custodians in the industry, the Madison Trust investments team has the educational background and training to provide guidance with regard to client inquiries within the self-directed investing space. This means members of the investments team are available to clients