Rent prices show largest one-month growth since the beginning of the pandemic!

Investment Property

Rental prices are bouncing back! We see the biggest single-month increase in rent prices since the beginning of the global pandemic. Apartment rental app Zumper reports that the price of a one-bedroom unit increased by 1.1%, and the average rent for a two-bedroom apartment in February rose 0.9%.

Through last year, Covid-19 disrupted the rental scene drastically. One-bedroom units in New York and Maine saw significant drops in rent prices. Even states like Massachusetts, Connecticut, Maryland, and Virginia also saw median rent prices go down during the pandemic’s peak.

There’s still good news for U.S. real estate investors as in just 2 months into 2021, low rental rates have finally reached the bottom. In some cases, like New York City, San Jose, and Boston, it is actually the first time rental prices have increased since the first quarter of 2020.

We think these events have presented an excellent time to secure an investment property or second home. Besides being able to take advantage of the higher rental yields and improved cash flow, property values in these states will likely correct up as the market heats up this summer. What better time to do this than now?

The increase in rates is largely tied to the uptick in mortgage rates that has slowed down the demand for new home purchases and refinances. Notably, year-over-year rate comparisons show that in major cities, there are still some great deals available. In San Francisco, the average one-bedroom is now 24.3% more affordable than it was a year ago, and two-bedroom rentals are 23.6% cheaper.

America Mortgages is committed to helping our clients find the best mortgage solutions. Keen to know what your mortgage options are? With a 97% approval rate for both U.S. Citizens & Foreign Nationals, our global team of U.S. mortgage specialists are ready to help you! Find out all about your mortgage options with us today!

For more information, please contact [email protected].

Sources:Fortune

Great Real Estate Reshuffling

Great Real Estate Reshuffling

According to a survey by Zillow, 1 in 10 Americans has moved in the past 12 months. With the COVID-19 vaccine implementation and the economy and housing market recovering, Zillow predicts that this number could increase to more than 40 percent in 2021; this means that millions of households could enter the housing market in 2021.

What prompted the Great Reshuffling?

A significant cause of the Great Reshuffling is due to the fact that work-from-home became a norm during the pandemic. Homebuyers quickly caught on to the fact that they can live and work in their dream home and location as long as they have an internet connection. Approximately 75% of those surveyed reported moving for positive reasons, such as being closer to their family, friends, or simply living in their desired part of the country.

Many cities, known as “secondary cities” across the country, have seen a massive influx of movers looking to take advantage of bigger homes with lower prices. According to Zillow, there has been an uptick in the number of people moving to the South over the past year.

The rise in people moving to more affordable areas has triggered a wave of first-time buyers. This is especially true in Phoenix, Charlotte, N.C., and Austin. Zillow’s data also showed the highest for-sale inventory climb in 4 major real estate areas – Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, and New York.

We see this as an excellent opportunity for real estate investors, as over the past couple of months, the housing markets outside of the urban areas have flourished. “We have created a process specifically for our overseas clients which is easier, faster, and more transparent than international banks.” Robert Chadwick, Co-Founder of GMG and America Mortgages.

At America Mortgages, we understand our global clients’ needs, and we provide solutions to match their needs. We make investing in U.S. real estate easy. Schedule a call with our mortgage specialists today.

For more information, please contact [email protected].

Sources: Housingwire.com & Realtrends

The Roaring 2020s?

mortgage specialist

The “Roaring 20’s” is often considered as one of the most prosperous times in the West. WWI had just ended, and the housing market’s growth, the development of infrastructure, telephone networks, automobiles, etc., was the centerpiece of growth. America’s wealth more than doubled in the years between 1920 and ’29 with most of the wealth invested into finance and industry but there was enough trickle-down to lower-income earners to help buoy a new consumer culture.

Doesn’t this sound familiar?

In 2020, FAANG stocks (our version of industrial stocks in 1920s) doubled as well!

FAANG stocks Graph

Meanwhile, as the world heads towards being incrementally more vaccinated, we are seeing inflation expectations rise, the first wage growth in over a decade, and a potential $3T infrastructure plan in the U.S. which draws some comparisons to FDR’s The New Deal.

Personally, I find it remarkable how the global macro narrative has shifted 180-degree only one year out from the start of a global pandemic, and also not far from when the discussions among leading economists were ‘when’ deflation would happen, not if. Now consensus, in under 12 months, has gone from deflation to inflation.

If you are looking for evidence that inflation is back, look no further than housing prices. Knight Frank reports that worldwide home prices rose 5.6% in 2020, and CoreLogic says U.S. home prices increased 10.4% year-on-year in February 2021, the highest in 15 years!

Taking some data points from Knight Frank’s survey, look at the annual % change in home prices in the major cities that Global Mortgage Group offers mortgages in.

Can you guess which city had the highest growth in the U.S., U.K., France, Canada, Australia, and Singapore? Read here to find the answer!

U.S.
Phoenix, California+14%
Seattle, Washington+13%
Los Angeles, California +10%
New York City, New York+10%
Atlanta, Georgia+8.9%
Dallas, Texas+8.4%
Miami, Florida+9.2%
Switzerland
Geneva, Switzerland+7%
France
Lyon, France+8.9%
Paris, France+7.7%
Australia
Sydney, Australia+4.5%
Brisbane, Australia+4.2%
Melbourne, Australia +3.6%
U.K.
Manchester, UK+8.7%
London, UK+4.3%
Canada
Montreal, Canada+15%
Toronto, Canada+10%
Vancouver, Canada+7%
Singapore
Singapore+2.2%

For more information, please contact [email protected].

Sources: World Property Journal, High Finance, History.com

Rebranding to America Mortgages on April 13th!

mortgage advisors

Dear Friends of Global Mortgage Group,

We are excited to announce that we are officially rebranding our U.S. mortgage business to America Mortgages on April 13th.

Enjoy the selection of quotes from history’s greatest minds and investors, including Warren Buffett, Mark Twain, and Teddy Roosevelt. So the next time you need a little motivation to keep going, here are a few quotes for you to reflect on.

Here is the link to our new website where you will find new information about our company, loan programs, our new expanded team globally, as well as hundreds of new Articles, Mortgage IQ, Case Studies, and Think Pieces in our Learning Lab section.

New Business Initiatives

America Mortgages will be expanding our licensed mortgage offerings as well as applying to become a direct wholesale mortgage lender. This will enhance our already comprehensive US loan programs with more flexibility, better pricing, and qualifying options than ever before. These programs will be announced as they are finalized, so continue to watch this space.

Technology

Our technology plan remains unchanged, and we will launch our API this year where our global partners can connect to our platform and offer U.S mortgages directly on their own website.

Lastly, as many of you know, our ultimate goal is to use technology to further streamline the mortgage journey for our international clients, from origination directly to underwriting. Our software is currently in development which will serve as the backbone of our connectivity. Here is a link from our DemoDay in Seoul in 2019.

Since we only focus on Foreign National and U.S. Expats living overseas, we have already streamlined an existing process by working directly with our investors to create loan programs specifically for our clients, which has eliminated many unnecessary steps. We expect our technology and process to further improve processing time by up to 80%!

Global Mortgage Group

GMG will be rebranded to an international real estate financing specialist where we connect our clients around the world with our network of banks, private lenders, private banks, family offices, and investment funds for their real estate financing needs.

Not only will we continue to offer residential mortgages to the: UK, France, Canada, Australia, and Singapore, we will further expand our already-active coverage of high net worth clients, in Asia, by offering bespoke real estate financing solutions.

As we continue on our journey to improve how international investors finance their overseas real estate investments, we are thankful for the support over the years from our clients from 34 countries around the world (and increasing)!

If you would like to learn more, please don’t hesitate to call us.

Sign of Robert Chadwick

Robert Chadwick
Co-founder

Sign of Donald Klip

Donald Klip
Co-founder

Have an enquiry about International or U.S. Mortgages?

Contact us:
To Schedule a call: Click here
WhatsApp: +65 8499-3229 (Singapore)
Email: [email protected] / [email protected]

Hong Kong family buys a home in Dallas to earn USD yield.

mortgage advisors

The Client

Our client saw our ads in the local papers and reached out to enquire about a mortgage. We were told that the current political climate in Hong Kong has made many locals look into overseas options.

How We Helped

While we don’t normally advise where to purchase, we noticed that many of our overseas investors looking strictly at rental yield tend to choose Texas.

Texas is a very popular market for overseas real estate investors and local U.S. real estate investors, so our client wanted to get pre-approved before making any offers on the property. We were able to pre-approve the client and issue a letter. Once he identified a property, he supplied the pre-approval letter giving both himself and the seller the confidence he had his mortgage financing worked out in advance.

Getting pre-approved and underwritten for a loan is a great way to start the process for anyone thinking of investing in U.S. real estate.

Loan Details

NationalityProperty ValueLoan AmountLTVRate
Hong Kong Citizen$375,000$262,50070%4.875%
TermAddressProperty TypePurposeLoan Type
30 year fixed (regardless of the borrower’s age)Dallas, TexasSingle-Family HomePurchaseResidential

U.K. marketing VP buys investment condo in Philadelphia to boost passive income.

America mortgages

The Client

Our client had read about the tight housing supply in major college towns. He did some research and found Philadelphia as the best value.

How We Helped

Our client wanted to purchase a duplex very close to a university where he could rent to students. He had no U.S. credit, and to add to the complexity, he was self-employed and didn’t show his true ability to service the debt. We were able to get him 75% financing using his U.K. credit, and the debt servicing was structured solely around the projected rental income of the property he was buying.

Loan Details

NationalityProperty ValueLoan AmountLTVRate
U.K Citizen$260,000$195,00070%6.125% Interest servicing only payments
TermAddressProperty TypePurposeLoan Type
5/1 ARMPhiladelphia, PennsylvaniaDuplex ResidencePurchaseResidential

Swiss Citizen working as a chef in Munich buys an apartment in Ohio to rent out for income.

advisor mortgage group

The Client

Our client had a limited budget and nothing available back home or in Munich in his price range. He found a small Single-Family Home in Dayton, Ohio, and came to us about a loan.

How We Helped

Our client had two rental properties in Germany that yielded 1% on average and had appreciated less than 8% over a 10-year period. He wanted to put his money to better use, and after extensive research on various global markets, he picked Ohio. As he was referred to us by a colleague who had closed a loan with our parent company GMG last year, he knew the type of financing we could arrange.

No U.S. credit. No U.S. income. Limited down payment. No problem. We were able to arrange 70% financing and closed the purchase within 33 days of entering the contract.

Loan Details

NationalityProperty ValueLoan AmountLTVRate
Swiss Citizen$145,000$101,50070%5.875%
TermAddressProperty TypePurposeLoan Type
30 year fixedDayton, OhioSingle-Family HomePurchaseResidential

Canadian doctor in Vancouver buys condo in Atlanta for rental income using 1031 Exchange.

mortgage broker | Canadian doctor

The Client

Our client from Australia came to us online and wanted to look for low-cost residential housing to earn investment income. They like the Midwest cities due to their low entry point.

How We Helped

Given the capital tax implications of selling, we suggested using a Tax Program called “1031 Exchange,” which allows property owners to swap one investment property into a more expensive one, which allows capital gains taxes to be deferred. They reviewed this option with their tax advisor and were able to roll the gains into the new purchase allowing them to buy a nicer property located in a better school district that equated to higher rental yields.

We found the client a very competitive foreign national mortgage, and they were able to take advantage of this Tax Incentive. (Also see Can a Canadian Buy a House in the USA?)

Loan Details

NationalityProperty ValueLoan AmountLTVRate
Canada Citizen$480,000$264,00055%4.750%
TermAddressProperty TypePurposeLoan Type
5/1 ARMAtlanta, GeorgiaSingle-Family HomePurchaseResidential

63-year-old French university professor releases equity from an investment home in St. Louis, Missouri.

mortgage specialists international

The Client

Our client came to us from an ad they saw on Facebook. He was reaching retirement age and wanted to buy a small business in Paris but needed additional funds.

How We Helped

Our client was 63 years old and concerned if he could qualify for a mortgage, the amortization period would be extremely short. When he spoke with one of our loan officers, this was his first concern. What makes the U.S. mortgage market unique is that every borrower is looked at the same. Regardless if you are 20 or 80, you still can qualify for a 30-year mortgage term, which makes servicing the monthly debt much more manageable.

We were able to get an equity release of 70% LTV even though the borrower was 63 years old, had no U.S. credit, and was nearing retirement. He was able to buy his business with the funds and enjoy his future retirement.

Loan Details

NationalityProperty ValueLoan AmountLTVRate
French Citizen$580,000$406,00070%5.49% interest servicing only
TermAddressProperty TypePurposeLoan Type
10-year interest-only, which converts to a 30 year fixedSt. Louis, MissouriSingle-Family HomeCash-out Equity release remortgageResidential