Jerry Chen, Real Estate Consultant

05/05/2020

'Zillow predicts a very fast 50-60% decline in home sales, which would bottom by the end of the spring and recover at a pace of about 10% each month through 2021.'

Home prices have only fallen nationally once since the Great Depression, and that was after the subprime mortgage crisis and the Great Recession. Now, barely eight years after hitting bottom, and after a mighty recovery, prices are predicted to fall nationally again, down 2-3% this year, according t...

04/08/2020

'Just as Americans are being instructed to stay home, it’s becoming one of the hardest things to afford.'

Just as Americans are being instructed to stay home, it’s becoming one of the hardest things to afford.

04/07/2020

'The council’s new rules apply for 90 days after California’s state of emergency is lifted, unless they’re altered by the council. The new rules mean borrowers and tenants do not have to respond to legal demands for payments during this period, and the rights to fight foreclosures and evictions are extended past the council’s freeze period.'

The state’s Judicial Council new rule will offer housing protections as well as minimize the court’s own workload during the pandemic.

04/02/2020

Buyers and sellers are in a wait and see period today -- but how long will it last?

03/31/2020

For landlords, Realtors®, and property managers, here is what you need to know in 2020 in the context of the novel coronavirus outbreak.

03/31/2020

'Digitally added furniture takes center stage.'

Digitally added furniture takes center stage. By Michelle Huffman As with most computer-generated graphics, virtual staging has come a long way in a short time. The best companies can seamlessly blend

03/30/2020

'The Great Recession in 2008 was supposed to be a once-in-a-generation economic calamity. Just 12 years later, the United States is facing a far more daunting crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

“This one is scarier to me, because we knew how to handle the other one,” former Rep. Barney Frank, a lawmaker who was central to crafting the 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street reform legislation, told Vox. “The other one was a result of human error and bad decisions. This is different.” '

There’s a lot more uncertainty this time around because of the coronavirus outbreak.

03/29/2020

'California governor Gavin Newsom issued a statewide moratorium on evictions Friday that will last through May 31. FAQs about what that means'

Governor Gavin Newsom issued an executive order preventing landlords from evicting tenants impacted by COVID-19, but there are still plenty of questions about who owes what, and when.

03/27/2020

'At the start of 2020, the Southern California housing market was heating up, juiced by cheap money and a growing economy.

Then a global pandemic hit.'

The coronavirus and its economic fallout are starting to impact the Southern California housing market.

09/29/2019

'David Burt helped two of the protagonists of Michael Lewis’ book The Big Short bet against the U.S. mortgage market in the run-up to the 2008 financial crisis. Now he’s betting against the market again, but this time, the risk is not from underwater subprime mortgages, it’s from homes sinking under water.'

David Burt helped two of the protagonists of Michael Lewis' book The Big Sh...

09/15/2019

'Insurance companies dropped more than 340,000 homeowners from wildfire areas in just four years. Between 2015 and 2018, the 10 California counties with the most homes in flammable forests saw a 177 percent increase in homeowners turning to an expensive state-backed insurance program because they could not find private insurance.'

California is facing yet another real estate-related crisis, but we’re not talking about its sky-high home prices.

09/08/2019

'Compass, a New York-based firm that has disrupted the brokerage industry, uses technology to provide services and arm agents with better back-end tools. After raising $370 million in its latest funding round, the brokerage said it was valued at $6.4 billion. Compass has also said it doesn’t plan to turn a profit for the foreseeable future. The firm, led by Robert Reffkin, declined to provide commentary on its valuation, and if WeWork’s move would affect it.'

Since the start of 2019, WeWork’s lofty $47 billion has been a fixture of fascination — how could an unprofitable startup be worth more than 15 times its revenue? Believers of that stratospheric valuation got a reality check this week when reports emerged that WeWork’s parent company was consi...