We’re excited to announce that Ben Frederick had the opportunity to be featured on Bloomberg TV’s American Dream series alongside a long-time business associate, Tammy Saul of Federal Hill Mortgage. As Baltimore’s leader in multi-family investment properties, Ben was brought on to the program to explain the benefits of house hacking amidst a very competitive real estate market for buyers. Let’s take a look at the state of that market right now, and how house hacking can be a useful tool in navigating a difficult real estate market.
A Competitive Market
American Dream highlights the current challenges buyers face in the real estate market right now, especially for those hoping to score their dream single-family home. A variety of factors have come into play that are currently affecting the state of the real estate market. A primary driving force is the effect the COVID-19 pandemic had on the market. When lockdowns began in March of 2020, the real estate industry braced itself for a stagnant period. However, as interest rates fell, buyers rushed to capitalize on the favorable financial situation, and homebuying spiked drastically. However, this situation simply exacerbated a long-standing problem. The real estate industry is at the mercy of the home building industry, which has been behind schedule since the Great Recession, meaning that there is an outsized demand met by an undersized supply. The COVID pandemic slowed building for part of 2020 as well, and though builders have rebounded to the highest level of productivity in over a decade, there is still a lot of catch-up to be done.
How House Hacking Can Benefit Buyers In This Market
Ben was brought in to detail for the audience the benefits of house hacking. This is the process of purchasing a home and renting out rooms to significantly reduce your own mortgage payments. In a time when the market is undergoing so much competition, house hacking is an appealing strategy that helps homeowners budget smarter, and allows them to save more over time. Not only is this a wise way to dip your feet into the world of investment realty, but it also is a forward-thinking financial decision for those that want to buy but won’t be using their extra space or rooms right away.
What Can Buyers Do to Stay Ahead of the Competition?
If you’re looking to purchase an investment property or single-family home right now, you need to be prepared for an aggressive bidding process. The best way to do this is by working with a qualified mortgage team like Tammy Saul’s team at Federal Hill Mortgage. For many years, the BFR team has worked closely with Tammy’s team to help our clients finance investment properties, and her extensive work with prospective homeowners has earned wonderful reviews and feedback from clients. If you’re hoping to beat out other bidders, pre-approval can help you understand exactly how much you can stretch your budget. The Federal Hill Mortgage team can meet the challenges you have and help finance the perfect property for you. If you’re ready to get started with your investment property journey, take a look at our newest listings.