Apartments are Getting Scarce and Rents are Rising

                   

It’s no secret that many underwater homeowners are losing their homes. At that point, they are renting apartments.

How big is the demand? In the 1980s, about 28 million people in the United States were living in rented apartments. By the 2010s, that number had risen to about 42 million.

It’s good news for apartment owners, who are seeing the values of their properties rise. Apartment values are also rising because the market is healthy, which makes financing cheaper.

It isn’t good news for renters. Rents are rising and vacancies are falling in some areas. For example, studio apartment rents in Chicago are increasing from an average of $720 to $765 a month.

Mainly because of foreclosures, the nation’s home-ownership rate fell by 2 percent between 2004 and 2010, according to the Census Bureau. Each 1 percent represents one million households moving into rentals.

Understanding Your Credit Score

                                          
Your credit score is one of the biggest determining factors in your ability to get a quality loan, and it is far more complex than just a three-digit number.
Yahoo! Personal Finance recently wrote an in-depth piece about understanding the intricacies of your credit score and what it means.

According to the article, “consumer research conducted by the Consumer Federation of America and VantageScore Solutions shows that many Americans don’t really understand their credit scores.”

The lower your credit score, the higher interest you will pay on loans and any line of credit. Understanding the basics of credit scores can help you achieve your goals, including home ownership.

Click here to view the article and learn more about credit scores.