Cost of Living, City by City So many Americans are alarmed by the persistence in the cost of living today.  As inflation rises, rent prices rise, and discretionary income declines for those in lower salary ranges, cost is pressuring everyone. The questions they ask vary from where can I buy a house for less than…

Rent Affordability is a Big Challenge for Rental Industry High rising home prices, costs of living, and rent prices are making life uncomfortable for tens of millions of Americans. Unaffordability and homelessness are issues that touch all communities, landlords and residents. Rents aren't falling yet wages and employment are questionable. With no real lasting solutions…

How Will Rising Interest Rates Affect the Rental Market? The US central bank is using interest rates as a way to control inflation, including home prices and rent price inflation. Yet this teeter totter mechanism is a top-down force that may not mesh well with what's actually happening in markets. And landlords and tenants both…

Gearing up for the Big Move of Renters 2021 and the pandemic had its big renter migration event, and wouldn't you know it's continuing, but in a different form in 2022/2023? What's driving it this time is the cost of living, and soon, employment.  If employment levels weaken in 2023, many renters could decide to…

Is the Rising Cost of Electricity a Threat? It's difficult to ignore the challenge of rising energy costs here in the US, nor elsewhere. Rising rents, food prices, taxes, transportation, and heating costs are reducing tenant's disposable income to zero. The net outcome is difficulty for tenants paying their bills, and for landlords, some possible…