Fannie, Freddie and Sallie

Sallie doesn't have anything to do with this but I remember with severe disdain when my first student loan bill showed up in the mail with a Sallie Mae logo emblazoned on the return address. I was living on proceeds from recyclable beer can deposits and all forms of sustenance sold in a box by General Mills and lo and behold, some entity with a weird name like my mom's wants $250/month for the next ten years.

Can you say, "forbearance?"

Here I am twelve or so years later, out from under Sallie's thumb but unfortunately, being stomped upon by her older, obviously more disgruntled siblings. So, what do they have to do with what I do now? This, I guess.

Making a healthy market

Economic naysayers around the Triangle rest a lot of their argument on the notion that the Triangle is often the last area to feel an economic meltdown and the first to climb out of it. Well, maybe they're right. To an extent, anyway.

It seems that money continues to flow into the market for new jobs and economic development, which is the core driver of multi-family property. The small multi-family market is holding steady, from a rent and occupancy numbers perspective. Class A, institutional-grade developments are also doing pretty well, despite the prospect of over-building.

But let's not get nuts. People are hurting. Lending has fallen off a cliff (probably the one they built with the mountain of documentation they now require), creating headaches for even qualified buyers. Right now, the best match for a sale is a motivated seller and a cash-heavy buyer. And that's not a real compatible pair.

Hold tight, folks.