Palm Beach Developer Tries To Flip Island Mansion For $120 Million, 41% More Than It Sold For In July

From ZeroHedge:

The South Florida housing market is sizzling with hot money from the North East, pushing up homes values sky high over the last year. One example of the mania is in Palm Beach, where a private island was bought in July and was relisted months later for a whopping 41% premium, according to WSJ.

One of Miami’s top real estate developers, Todd Michael Glaser, is taking advantage of the bubble, fueled by Wall Street bankers and other elites who have the economic mobility to leave the Northeast for the Sunshine State.

Glaser purchased 10 Tarpon Way, also known as 10 Tarpon Isle, for approximately $85 million in July and has since relisted the tiny 2.5-acre island for $120 million, or $35 million more than he paid a few months ago. The island was created by dredging crews in the 1930s and is only accessible by bridge. Glaser bought the island from private investor William M. Toll and his wife, Eileen, who paid $7.6 million for the property in 1998.

Tarpon Island

The real estate developer said potential buyers have two options: pay the $120 million now or wait ten months for a new renovation for $200 million.

Concept Drawing Of New Renovation

He said with all the hot money flowing into the Palm Beach area, “a $100 million house isn’t that crazy anymore, believe it or not,” adding that in the last 18 months, eight $100 million homes have been sold.

If a potential buyer wants to wait ten months and pay an additional $80 million. The developer will completely redesign the mansion by doubling it to 25,000 sqft, with 14 bedrooms, in addition to a hair salon, gym, and spa. A new pool, octagonal tennis pavilion, and a golf practice area will be installed on the outside.

Some ask how long will this speculation fever last as the Federal Reserve could embark on tapering its extensive bond-buying program later this year or early 2022.

One real estate expert believes the peak of the South Florida housing market could be nearing:

Dr. Ken Johnson, a real estate economist with Florida Atlantic University’s College of Business, told local news WPLG that a peak in the housing cycle could have already arrived, but he believes a crash is not in the mix because demand still outpaces supply.

It remains to be seen if some greater fool will pay the $120 million for the island mansion or $200 million tens months later after renovations.

Time for The Fed to start tapering the punchbowl?

Greater fools?

Broken Transmission: Bank Deposits Have Exceeded Bank Credit Since Covid (C&I Lending Down -13.5% YoY, Residential Lending Down -2.1% YoY)

US banks have the Phed Pneumonia and the Fauci Flu.

Since the Covid outbreak in early 2020, The Federal Reserve lowered their target rate and super-spiked their balance sheet. Helping to lower bank deposit rates to near zero.

But despite near zero bank deposit rates, we seeing bank deposits are larger than bank credit such as commercial and industrial loans, residential mortgages loans, car loans, etc. Normally, bank credit EXCEEDS bank deposits.

The problem? One of them is negative growth in commercial and industrial lending. It declined 13.5% YoY in August. Of course, The Federal government extended emergency business loans that were counted as C&I loans, hence the spike in C&I loan growth in May 2020. But now we are seeing a real slowdown in C&I lending.

Residential lending is down 2.1% YoY as of September 10 (for August).

Commercial real estate lending? At least it is growing at a 2.9% YoY pace for August.

Credit cards and other revolving plans increase steadily since 2014 and then declined after the Fauci Flu struck. But credit cards and revolving credit has started to rise again.

The Fed’s massive overreaction to Covid caused a storm surge in C&I lending that has subsided. But other bank lending has slowed as well.

Lots of bank assets with nowhere to go.

No wonder M2 Money Velocity (GDP/M2 Money) is at historic lows.

Remember, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is up for reappointment and President Biden must make a decision on his reappointment.

U.S. Producer Prices Increased in August by More Than Forecast (Hot, Hot, Hot!) Fed Pouring Money Into Clogged System

Producer prices are getting hot, hot, hot!

(Bloomberg) — Prices paid to U.S. producers increased in August by more than forecast as persistent supply chain disruptions squeeze production costs higher.

The producer price index for final demand increased 0.7% from the prior month and 8.3% from a year ago, a fresh series high, Labor Department data showed Friday. Excluding the volatile food and energy components, the so-called core PPI advanced 0.6%, and was up 6.7% from August of last year.

PPI Final Demand prices rose 8.3% YoY in August.

Given that there are shortages in the economy, why is The Federal Reserve pumping so much money into the system? It is like repeatedly flushing a clogged toilet hoping it will clear.

The correct way to clear a clogged economic toilet.

Not The Fed way of clearing clogged toilets. Pumping trillions of dollars into a clogged economic system.

The Fed’s comment on their plumbing prowess? “Come on feel the noiz!”

Because inflation is run, runaway.

Rent Inflation: National Average RENT Rose 10.3% YoY (Fed’s Got A Line On YOU!)

Not only after home prices screaming at near 20% YoY growth, but apartment rents are surging as well.

(Bloomberg) — Apartment rents were up in August from a year earlier in all the top 30 U.S. metro areas, the first time that’s happened since the start of the pandemic, according to a new report by Yardi.

The national average rent in multi-family buildings rose 10.3% from a year earlier to $1,539 — the first double-digit rise in the dataset’s history — after a $25 increase in August, the real-estate firm said. Over the past 10 years, the average pace of growth has been 2%.

Zillow’s rent index of all homes is growing at 9.25% YoY.

Fed Chair Jerome “Inflation is Transitory” Powell.

The Fed has a line on you! Or at least a bullseye on the back of renters.

Is it safe …. for renters?

Yields Plunge After Spectacular 30Y Auction, Lowest Dealer Takedown On Record (Yellen Fearmongering US Debt Default)

Face it, the 30-year Treasury market is not as interesting as widely-traded as the 10-year Treasury market. But we did see some interesting revelations in today’s 30 year Treasury auction.

If yesterday’s 10Y auction was blockbuster, one of the strongest benchmark sales on record, then today’s $24 billion offering of 30Y paper – the last coupon auction of the week – was nothing short of spectacular.

Printing at a high yield of just 1.910%, the auction not only stopped at the lowest yield since January’s 1.825%, but also stopped through the When Issued by a whopping 1.8bps, the most since April and ended 4 consecutive months of tails in the 30Y tenor.

The bid to cover of 2.486 was not only a big jump from last month’s 2.208 but also the highest since the 2.500% in July 2020, and far above the six-auction average of 2.276.

The bid-to-cover ratio is the dollar amount of bids received in a Treasury security auction versus the amount sold. The bid-to-cover ratio is an indicator of the demand for Treasury securities. A high ratio is an indication of strong demand.

Primary dealers are responsible for absorbing any supply not bought by direct or indirect bidders. Indirect bidders, which include fund managers and foreign central banks. Dealer takedown of the 30Y Treasury is historically low.

The 10-year auction was similar in that the high rate fell. But the bid-to-cover declined.

The US Treasury actives curve remains upward sloping, albeit at lower yields across the curve.

Meanwhile, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellin’ is fear-mongering about a possible US debt default. True, US Treasury cash balance has declined to $231 billion.

Will Congress pass a budget and fill the Treasury coffers will lots of money? Of course. Here is the US CDS curve compared to Venezuela’s CDS curve. The US curve is close to zero while Venezuela’s at near 1,600 across tenors.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen.

Citi Inflation Surprise Index Remains Elevated With M2 Money Surge (Did The Fed Overreact??)

Covid struck in early 2020 and The Fed spiked the punchbowl with a massive surge in M2 Money. Like a storm surge.

Today’s unemployment report showed initial jobless claims and continuing jobless claims ALMOST at pre-Covid levels.

So it appears that The Fed’s job is done (under the assumption that The Fed had anything to do with the recovery).

So did The Fed almost violently overreact to the Covid crisis? The Atlanta Fed’s Raphael Bostic says it is too early to withdraw while St Louis Fed’s James “Bully” Bullard says it is time to taper.

Really Raph? 18.8% price growth is not enough for you?

Homebuying Startup Orchard Reaches $1 Billion Unicorn Valuation (But What Is House Price Growth Slows … Or Falls??)

Let’s get ready to tumble! New homebuying startup emerges as US house prices begin slowing.

(Bloomberg) — Orchard, which offers cash to homebuyers upfront so they can purchase a new residence before selling their old one, raised $100 million to fuel growth in an ultra-competitive housing market that’s pushing shoppers to find new ways to stand out.

The fundraising round values the startup at more than $1 billion, making it the latest unicorn company to tackle the challenge of simplifying the process of buying or selling a home. Boston-based Accomplice led the round, with existing investors FirstMark, Revolution, First American and Juxtapose also participating.

“We can say we’re a unicorn, which feels good for about five seconds, and then it’s back to the real world of building a business,” Chief Executive Officer Court Cunningham said in an interview. “We’re trying to create a modern way to buy and sell homes, and that’s capital intensive.”

Cunningham, previously CEO of online marketing company Yodle, started Orchard in 2017 to take on what he viewed as a ripe opportunity: Consumers were frustrated with the traditional way of buying and selling homes, and the $1.7 trillion U.S. housing market was big enough to make tackling the problem worthwhile.

Orchard focuses on people who are trying to buy their next home while selling an existing one, a nerve-wracking process that can cause a transaction to collapse or result in households carrying two mortgages.
In addition to offering cash to help clients buy their next home, the New York-based company provides funds to make light repairs before listing the existing home on the market. Orchard seeks to profit by operating as a brokerage and earning commissions.

There have always been services that purchase homes from you. Typically, there firms simply pay off your mortgage, so if you have a higher mortgage balance relative to you home value, you may not like what you are offered. But Orchard is not that model.

If you “List with Orchard,” and your home doesn’t end up selling on the open market, Orchard will buy your home. Sellers in some markets also have the option to sell immediately to the company. Orchard wants you to list for 30 days before selling to them for their backup cash offer price. If you sell directly to Orchard, you’ll also pay an additional 1% convenience fee on top of the 6% you’re already paying commission.

When home prices have been rising at a 17-18% YoY pace, this seems like a good model. But what if The Federal Reserve removes it massive monetary stimulus and/or The Federal Government slows down it fiscal stimulus? Then Orchard, if they purchase your home, will likely lose considerable amounts. Being aware of this possibility, Orchard is likely to buy homes at a considerable discount.

But there is still worries about inflation. Here is the Citi Inflation Surprise index.

Orchard has a northern Virginia site.

Publicly traded companies known as iBuyers are pioneering a high-tech approach to home-flipping intended to make selling properties easier. Those firms include Opendoor Technologies Inc., Redfin Corp., and Offerpad Solutions Inc. A fourth, Zillow Group Inc., recently raised $450 million by issuing bonds, backed by the homes it buys and sells.

Whoomp, there it is.

85% Of High Yield Bonds Have A Negative Real Yield (And Real 30Y Mortgages Rates At -2.5% While Real Fed Funds Target Rate Is -5.12%)

We are living in a negative real yield world.

According to Deutsche Bank, 85% of the US High Yield market has a yield below the current rate of inflation.

Its not only high-yield bonds that have negative REAL yields, but even The Fed Funds Target rate is negative at -5.12%. The real 10-year government bond yield is -4.01% and the REAL Freddie Mac 30-year mortgage survey rate is -2.5%.

Yes, its The Fed’s little green bag at work. Is Fed Chair Powell REALLY Mr. Blonde???

Slowdown! U.S. Annual Home Prices Gain a Record 18% in July (But Forecast To Slow Considerably By July 2022)

Slowdown! Forecast home price growth for July 2022, that is.

(Bloomberg) — U.S. home prices increased 18% in July compared to a year earlier, according to a CoreLogic Inc. report released Tuesday.

The jump is the largest 12-month gain in the index since the series began 45 years ago. On a month-over-month basis, home prices increased by 1.8% in July from June.

“Home price appreciation continues to escalate as millennials entering their prime home buying years, renters looking to escape skyrocketing rents and deep pocketed investors drive demand,” said Frank Martell, president and CEO of CoreLogic, a global property-information firm.

The rush of home buyers — amid extremely low mortgage rates — has caused a lack of supply, which is unlikely to be resolved over the next five to 10 years “without more aggressive incentives for builders to add new units,” he said in a statement.

But it is the forecast for July 2022 that is interesting. A slowdown in home price growth across the board.

Lets see what happens to wage growth are three out of four Americans lose their Covid benefits as of today.

Ironman! Commodities Point To Slowing Economy And Inflation (Atlanta Fed GDPNow Forecast For Q3 Drops To 3.7%)

What if inflation is actually transitory like The Federal Reserve has been saying? Or is The Fed really telling us about an impending economic slowdown after the Fed’s and Federal government stimulypto wears off?

Iron ore prices have slowed noticeably after peaking earlier this year. Lumber futures (random length) have crashed to pre-Covid levels.

On the other hand, food stuffs and raw industrials remain elevated, but the growth in price has stalled (see pink box).

The Atlanta Fed’s GDPNow model of GDP growth shows a slowing of Q3 GDP to 3.7%. A slowdown from above 7% for the blue chip consensus.

President Biden, aka The Kabul Klutz, is now recommending tax increases as a result of the terrible jobs report from Friday. Rather than focus on The Fed’s monetary stimulus not working for the labor market.

The problem with fiscal stimulus is that the debt lasts forever but the GDP effects are short-lived. And The Fed is a crazy train.