Odds are fairly low that the historically long U.S. economic expansion ends in recession by 2021, according to the Urban Land Institute’s latest real estate economic forecast.

Panelists detailing the findings during a ULI webinar put the probability of recession between 30% and 40%. Instead of recession, economic growth likely will slow over the next couple of years, the semiannual survey of 41 economists at 32 real estate firms found. 

When you do the unusual thing regularly you to discover a ton of new and exciting things.

And that will refuel your curiousness about what else is out there that you haven't discovered just yet.

So how do you do the unusual thing and break out of your comfort zone in small and sometimes bigger ways?

The Federal Reserve reduced the federal funds rate by 25 basis points (bps) today, bringing the target range down to 1.75% to 2.0%. With this reduction, monetary authorities are moving to mitigate the negative effects of various risk factors—largely external—that continue to mount. Additionally, the interest rate on excess reserves was reduced to 1.8%—representing a decrease of 30 bps—to alleviate stress in short-term lending markets.

We like these kind of surveys because they always point out what we real estate investors already know - that investing in real estate is not only a smart choice but the best choice for the long run! That being said, the folks over Sophisticated Investor conducted a survey asking 2k US respondents which investments they regarded as the safest for long-term retirement investing.

According to new report about Opportunity Zones from ATTOM Data Solutions, roughly 80 percent of the zones had median home prices in the Q2 2019 that were below the national figure of $266k and that half had median prices of less than $150k.  In addition, they compared Opportunity Zones to surrounding regions and found that median Q2 2019 prices in about one in four zones were less than 50% of the typical value in the Metropolitan Statistical Areas in which they exist.  Indeed...

The Trump administration said it would support returning mortgage-finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to private hands, a development that could keep the companies at the center of the housing market for decades to come.

Have you ever thought about turning obsolete buildings into climate controlled self-storage? That subject was tackled in a recent episode of the Rental Property Owner & Real Estate Investor podcast. Host Brian Hamrick interviews Scott Krone, the managing partner of Coda Management Group, a company that teams up with investors to purchase and convert undervalued warehouse space into climate controlled Self-Storage Facilities.

The Greeks had a saying: “Know thyself.” Because you are always with you, you might be tempted to believe that you know yourself better than anyone else. Sadly, this is untrue. In a lot of ways, it is easier for others to see some of your nature than it is for you to recognize it in yourself.

Because this is true, you rarely see the obstacles that prevent better results, the largest of which are of your own making.