What’s hot in the real estate market
Real estate values are finally, solidly on the rise. Both residential and commercial properties are seeing strong gains and potentially long-term yields. For investors large or small to cash in, the most important factors to consider are location, sector and demand.
In the residential market, home values have come off the bottom of the housing crash, but they are still well below the highs of the recent housing boom. Single-family home prices were up 11.8 percent in November, according to CoreLogic, the most recent reading available. 2013 was in fact the best year for home price appreciation since 2005, but price gains are varying dramatically from market to market.
The biggest gains are in markets that investors entered early, buying up distressed properties, rehabbing them and putting them up for rent. For instance, in Nevada, where housing crashed hardest in 2008, prices are up more than 25 percent from a year ago, while they are only up 3.5 percent in Pennsylvania, which saw less of a housing decline.