IRVINE, CA – CoreLogic, a leading global property information, analytics and data-enabled solutions provider, released its CoreLogic Home Price Index (HPI) and HPI Forecast for February 2017 which shows home prices are up both year over year and month over month.

Home prices nationwide, including distressed sales, increased year over year by 7 percent in February 2017 compared with February 2016 and increased month over month by 1 percent in February 2017 compared with January 2017, according to the CoreLogic HPI.

The CoreLogic HPI Forecast indicates that home prices will increase by 4.7 percent on a year-over-year basis from February 2017 to February 2018, and on a month-over-month basis home prices are expected to increase by 0.4 percent from February 2017 to March 2017. The CoreLogic HPI Forecast is a projection of home prices using the CoreLogic HPI and other economic variables. Values are derived from state-level forecasts by weighting indices according to the number of owner-occupied households for each state.

“Home prices and rents have risen the most in local markets with high demand and limited supply, such as Seattle, Portland and Denver,” said Dr. Frank Nothaft, chief economist for CoreLogic. “The rise in housing costs has been largest for lower-tier-priced homes. For example, from December to February in Seattle, the CoreLogic Home Price Index rose 12 percent and our single-family rent index rose 6 percent for all price tiers compared with the same period a year earlier. But, when looking at only lower-cost homes in Seattle, the price increase was 13 percent and the rent increase was 7 percent.”

“Home prices continue to grow at a torrid pace so far in 2017, and these gains are likely to continue well into the future,” said Frank Martell, president and CEO of CoreLogic. “Home prices are at peak levels in many major markets and the appreciation is being driven by a number of dynamics—high demand, stronger employment, lean supplies and affordability—that will continue to play out in the coming years. The CoreLogic Home Price Index is projecting an additional 5 percent rise in home prices nationally over the next 12 months.”

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LOS ANGELES, CA – As millennials continue to go in droves to urban centers, there is increased demand for housing solutions designed to meet their diverse set of needs, says David Senden, principal and board of directors, KTGY Architecture + Plotting. “In most urban markets, there is a limited supply of rental units appropriate for a single person with a starting salary budget. This disparity of supply and demand has driven rental prices up to a point where many young adults are spending more on their housing expenses than is typically recommended,” notes Senden. “Young renters in New York, Boston and San Francisco, for example, can easily spend 50 percent or more of their yucky salary on rent. Those who choose to pay unsustainably high rents to live the lifestyle they desire may then sacrifice potential savings or risk accruing increased personal debt. Others may have to live in unsafe areas or in substandard conditions.”

Many developers are addressing these issues by decreasing the size of studio apartments in their recent developments. As unit square footages decrease, rents tend to follow. “Over the last 10 years, the average size of a studio apartment has decreased 18 percent, from 614 square feet to 504 square feet. This trend is also linked to the recent rise of the Micro-Unit: super-small studios popping up in urban areas around the nation and abroad,” Senden said.

While decreasing the size of the units is one solution for maintaining affordable rents, not all renters want to live in a tiny apartment by themselves. “The millennial generation thrives on the social interaction of internet sites like Instagram, Snapchat and Facebook, and by hanging out with groups of friends at coffee shops, breweries and food halls. KTGY’s Macro-Unit is a new community living solution that integrates a connection to a greater social network by combining the modest rent associated with small square footage per resident, with the social interaction of shared common living spaces,” said Senden.

By minimizing the square footage of the private bedrooms and bathrooms, a larger space can be devoted to the common kitchen and living areas, says Senden. “A variety of seating configurations have been incorporated into the living area to serve multiple people or groups of people engaging in smaller conversations. The lounge seating area in the living room connects through a glass roll-up garage-style door to the large outdoor balcony, expanding the area of the living space. The kitchen provides duplicate appliances to better serve all 11 residents. Two refrigerators, two dishwashers, two microwaves and two ovens make simultaneous cooking projects possible. Booth and bar seating with built-in charging stations are designed for eating and socializing, as well as providing a location for residents to work from home,” Senden stated.

Young adults have been renting large houses and dividing the spaces with their friends to make the rent affordable for many years. According to Senden, the Macro-Unit takes that concept a step further to make a more formalized design solution. “With a variety of management and leasing options and flexibility in the building design, the Macro-Unit can be adapted to the specific needs of a site and target demographic. In keeping with the fantastic diversity of today’s young urban professional community, residential housing solutions intended to serve this community must strive for equally varied housing solutions. The Macro-Unit aspires to contribute to that diversity,” Senden said.

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IRVINE, CA – The Bascom Group has bought Villas at Tustin Apartments, a 406-unit infill apartment community located in the heart of Orange County, California. The $94.0 million sale ($231,527/unit) closed on March 28, 2017. 

Sean Deasy and Ryan Fitzpatrick of HFF were the listing brokers for the sale. Charles Halladay and Jamie Kline of HFF arranged the $66.5 million loan with California Bank & Trust. 

Villas at Tustin was constructed in 1972 and is located at 2414 N. Tustin Avenue, Santa Ana, California.  Chad Sanderson, Senior Principal for Bascom states “Villas at Tustin is one of the best investment opportunities we have seen in Orange County. Villas is in a fantastic location with simple access to the 55, 22, 91, and 5 freeways. This is extremely attractive to potential tenants. We are excited to modernize Villas at Tustin’s interiors and exteriors to allow the property to compete with newly-constructed Class A properties.” 

Villas at Tustin marks Bascom’s 21st multifamily property closed in Orange County and its 166th multifamily property closed in California. Over the past twelve months Bascom has bought $1.3 billion in multifamily properties throughout the United States. 

Villas at Tustin is conveniently located near major employment centers in Orange, Tustin, Irvine, and Anaheim. Several notable companies house regional offices or are headquartered in the South Coast Metro, including Xerox, T-Mobile, and CoreLogic. Villas at Tustin is minutes from major retail centers, including Tustin Marketplace, The District at Tustin Legacy, and South Coast Plaza, which offer a combined 5.3 million square feet of retail space. 

Lee Nguyen, Senior Vice President of Bascom, comments “The South Coast Metro continues to be a strong draw to younger generations of tenants. To appeal to this group, we plot to give a modern update to Villas at Tustin’s unit interiors and property amenities. Villas at Tustin presents a strong value-add opportunity in a location we are very excited about.” 

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