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Today in Real Estate Investing
Real estate news for investors, updated through the day.
U.S. · Finance · Nov 4, 2026
ARMs Reach 11.4% of Mortgage Applications as the Rate Gap Tops a Point
Adjustable-rate loans were 11.4% of applications in the week ending Oct. 30, MBA said, as the 5/1 ARM fell to 6.29% and the 30-year fixed eased to 7.30%.
Local News
Local News →Metros where permits, jobs or prices just made an unusual move.
- Worcester, MA · PermitsWorcester's 31.1% Permit Drop Traces Mostly to Three 2025 BuildingsCensus building permits, 12 months to Sep 2026Analyze a Property in Worcester
- Naples, FL · Home PricesA Year After a 4.8% Annual Drop, Naples Home Prices Sit 0.8% HigherFreddie Mac House Price Index, Aug 2026Analyze a Property in Naples
- Spokane, WA · Home PricesSpokane Home Prices Edge 0.9% Above Last Year After a Spring LowFreddie Mac House Price Index, Aug 2026Analyze a Property in Spokane
- Durham, NC · JobsDurham Payrolls Run 3,600 Jobs Ahead of a Year EarlierBLS, Sep 2026Analyze a Property in Durham
Market Data and Our Latest Articles
Federal data for every U.S. metro next to our latest articles on markets, strategy and the math behind the numbers.
Rates and the Economy Today
Browse all 400 metros →- 30yr MortgageFreddie Mac PMMS
- 7.24%
- U.S. Unemployment
- 4.2%
- CPI YoY
- 3.7%
- Rent CPI YoY
- 2.8%
- Housing Starts
- 1.22M
- Months of Supply
- 8.4
Freddie Mac PMMS · BLS · Census · Updated as each agency publishes
Markets That Moved in September 2026
- Charlotte, NCJobsPayroll jobs on the year to Sep 2026Unemployment 3.3%, −0.6 pointsup 1.8% on the yearAnalyze a Property
- Columbus, OHPermits12,819 homes permitted12 months to Sep 2026, change on the yeardown 18.1% on the yearAnalyze a Property
- Detroit, MIPermits7,557 homes permitted12 months to Sep 2026, change on the yeardown 17.1% on the yearAnalyze a Property
- Houston, TXPermits58,010 homes permitted12 months to Sep 2026, change on the yeardown 13.5% on the yearAnalyze a Property
- Memphis, TNPermits4,509 homes permitted12 months to Sep 2026, change on the yearup 43.3% on the yearAnalyze a Property
- Urban Honolulu, HIPermits1,635 homes permitted12 months to Sep 2026, change on the yearup 16.6% on the yearAnalyze a Property
Bureau of Labor Statistics; Census Bureau.
Latest Posts
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Fair Market Rent 2027 by Metro: Why HUD's Number Fell in Dallas and Rose 13% in Chicago
HUD's fair market rent for 2027 fell in 22 of the 59 biggest areas, Dallas included, and rose 13% in Chicago. Why, and what it means for a voucher lease.
Rent Growth Assumption for 2027: Why 3% Is Too High for Most Big MetrosResearch · Nov 1, 2026
How Much House Can You Afford at 7.4%? Not the Number on Your Pre-ApprovalPrepare · Oct 30, 2026
Buy, Borrow, Die for Foreign Owners: Why the Last Step Can Cost More Than SellingExpand · Oct 28, 2026
Rent vs Buy by City, 2026: The Monthly Gap at 7.4% in 53 Big Metros, and What to Do With ItPrepare · Oct 27, 2026
Listen, Then Decide
Five-minute episodes to build intuition, plus real-stakes scenarios to test it. Pick a side, read the math, defend your call.
Your Metro's Rent Rose 1%. Is That Normal There?
Say your metro's rent rose about 1% in a year. Whether that's normal depends on its own last two years. Here's the test, run on September 2026 data.
Your Metro's Voucher Rent Fell 6%. Your Section 8 Tenant Renews in March.
HUD's 2027 voucher rent fell 6% in a Dallas ZIP, and a Section 8 lease renews March 1. Ask $100 more, renew flat, or a documented $20? The math on all three.
Tampa Prices Stopped Falling. Buy Now, or Wait a Quarter?intermediate · 6 min read
You're Moving. Your First Home Would Rent for $1,330. Keep It or Sell?beginner · 6 min read
You Have $40,000 Saved. Buy at 7.4%, or Keep Saving?beginner · 5 min read
The Seller Moved Your Closing. Who Pays to Keep Your Rate?beginner · 5 min readAnalyze Any Listing as You Browse
On Zillow, Redfin, Realtor.com and Homes.com, with break-even rent on Zillow search results: Cap rate · Cash-on-cash · DSCR · See it in action →
2,300+ Terms. Zero Jargon.
From ROI to Cap Rate — clear definitions with practical examples for every phase of your investing journey.
The 2% Rule
The 2% rule is a rental property screening formula that says a deal is worth pursuing only if the monthly rent equals or exceeds 2% of the purchase price — a threshold so aggressive that it limits you almost exclusively to Class C/D properties in low-cost markets where high cash flow comes packaged with high risk.
Did you know?Paper cash flow is not real cash flow. The 2% rule screens for gross rent relative to price — it says nothing about actual operating costs. A property that hits 2% with $1,600/month rent on an $80,000 purchase looks great until you add $400/month in maintenance, $200/month in vacancy loss, and $180/month in management fees. Run full underwriting on every deal, not just the rent-to-price ratio. The expense ratio lie…
Read full term →Real Estate Investing Simplified
Second edition, updated for 2026. Follow one investor from a layoff scare to five units in 24 months, on a $78,000 salary and without quitting his job. Then run the same five PRIME phases on your first deal.
Book Reviews
HOLD Review: The Keller Buy-and-Hold Manual, and the Two Pages to SkipSteve Chader, Jennice Doty, Jim McKissack and Linda McKissack, with Jay Papasan · 4/5
How to Lie with Statistics Review: The 70-Year-Old Book That Still Explains Every Misleading Real Estate ChartDarrell Huff · 4.2/5
The Real Book of Real Estate Review: A Sampler of Specialists, Not the Reference It Claims to BeRobert Kiyosaki (editor) · 3.6/5View all reviews →What Investors Are Saying
“PRIME turned my real estate dreams into reality. With their simple framework and actionable resources, I went from feeling overwhelmed to purchasing my first rental property with confidence.”
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“This site and the REI PRIME Book gave me a straightforward system that actually works.”
The People Behind PRIME
Our writers, analysts and podcast host cover the markets, the math and the decisions behind a deal.