Tag Archives: oregon
US foreclosure figures tailing off, latest data suggests
The foreclosure crisis is over in the United States but the distress caused by the housing bust is still lingering, according to the latest report from housing data firm RealtyTrac. Foreclosure filings were reported on 116,913 properties in August, an increase of 7% from the previous month but still down 9% from a year ago, the smallest decrease in the last 47 consecutive months of year on year declines in US foreclosure activity. A total of 51,192 properties were scheduled for foreclosure auction during the month, down 1% from the previous month but up 1% from a year ago, the first annual increase in scheduled foreclosure auctions following 44 consecutive months of annual decreases. Scheduled foreclosure auctions in judicial foreclosure states where foreclosures are processed through the court system increased 5% from a year ago. ‘The August foreclosure numbers demonstrate that although the foreclosure crisis is well behind us, the messy business of cleaning up the distress lingering from the housing bust continues in many markets,’ said Daren Blomquist, vice president at RealtyTrac. ‘The annual increase in foreclosure auctions, the first since the robo-signing controversy rocked the foreclosure industry back in late 2010, indicates mortgage servicers are finally adjusting to the new paradigms for proper foreclosure that have been implemented in many states, whether by legislation or litigation or both,’ he added. Scheduled foreclosure auctions increased from a year ago in 24 states, including Colorado with a rise of 160%, Oregon up 117%, Connecticut up 81%, New York also up 81%, Oklahoma up 72%, New Jersey up 71%, Illinois up 25%, South Carolina up 21% and Maryland up 17%. The report also shows that more than 55,000 properties started the foreclosure process in August, up 12% from previous month and flat from year ago. It was the second consecutive month where foreclosure starts have increased on a month on month basis. Foreclosure starts, which in some states are the scheduled foreclosure auctions, increased from a year ago in 19 states, including Oklahoma up 147%, Indiana up 136%, New Jersey up 115%, Massachusetts up 55%, Florida up 24% and Maryland up 20%. Lenders repossessed 26,343 properties via foreclosure (REO) in August, up 2% from the previous month but down 33% from a year ago. It was the 21st consecutive month where REO activity declined on a year on year basis nationally. REOs increased from a year ago in seven states, included Georgia up 146%, Hawaii up 42%, Oregon up 20%, Pennsylvania up 12% and Connecticut up 10%. Six of the nation’s 20 largest metro areas posted year on year increases in foreclosure activity. In Washington, D.C. there was a rise of 18%, New York up 18%, Baltimore up 12%, Atlanta up 11%, Philadelphia also up 11% and San Francisco up 2%. Among the nation’s 20 largest metros those with the five highest foreclosure rates were Miami with one in every 359 housing units with a foreclosure filing, Tampa one in every 407 housing units, Baltimore one in every 17 housing units,… Continue reading
Investing For The Future Surge In Commodity Prices
Sep 23 2013 Buying farmland isn’t what it used to be. As stated by British born investor Jeremy Grantham in a re cent Wall Street Journal Article : “The investment implications are, of course, own stock in the ground, own great resources, reserves of phosphorous, potash, oil, copper, tin, zinc-you name it…and the most important of all is food. The pressures on food are worse than anything else, and therefore, what is the solution? Very good farming, which can be done. The emphasis from an investor’s point of view is on very good farmland” Increasing urbanization has changed the view on farmland in regards to investing and inflation protection. This disconnect hasn’t stopped many institutional and large investors, like Grantham, from seeing value in the “nooks and crannies” and adding high quality farmland to their portfolio’s. Arable land demand has increased substantially in the last decade as attested by record farmland values. The U.S. average price of farmland increased nearly 9% in 2011 and nearly 10% in 2012. (click to enlarge) (source: NASS ) On a global level, China’s Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps recently purchased 7.4 million acres of farmland in Ukraine . Indonesia also announced they were looking to buy 1 million hectares (roughly 2.47 million acres) of Austrialian farmland for cattle production. The growing number of countries purchasing farmland capacity seems to point to future concerns of food supply. As the Dow Jones Industrial and the S&P continue to touch record highs, investors may want to begin looking at alternative investments that have low to negative correlations to the “traditional” asset classes. You can invest in farmland and agriculture in a variety of ways. Below are few ways to play continued returns in farmland. Gladstone Land Corp ( LAND ) – A U.S. based farmland investment company that currently offers a plus 9% annual distribution. It owns and leases farmland in Florida, California, Michigan and Oregon with appraised land value of $79 million. The distribution is paid monthly which should attract income investors. MarketVectors Agribusiness Index ( MOO ) – A diversified agriculture ETF with holdings in a variety of the largest agribusiness companies globally. Holdings include Bunge ( BG ), Archer Daniel Midland ( AMD ), PotashCorp ( POT ) and Deere ( DE ). Cresud ( CRESY ) – An Argentinean based agriculture company that currently owns roughly 2.4 million acres of farmland in Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Bolivia. CRESY produces a variety of crops consisting of soybeans, corn, and sugarcane. It also has operations in beef cattle and milk production. In the second quarter , Cresud sold 4 of its farms for roughly $60.5 million and saw large gains in its farmland development business. CRESY is currently trading down roughly 60% from its highs back in late 2010. Many farming companies have struggled to release value for shareholders with the drop in crop prices but now many are beginning to see value with the sale of farmland. Adecoagro SA ( AGRO ) – Adecoagro is a Luxemburg based small-cap agriculture company. AGRO operates on roughly 300,000 hectares of land throughout Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay and produces a variety crops including sugar, corn, soybeans, cotton, rice and dairy. Since peaking in March 2011 at $13.91 a share, Adecoagro is currently trading near its lows at $7.45. I like AGRO for many reasons, but primarily due to it currently trading at a discount to the value of its land given recent sales. Along with its variety of crops, Adecoagro is also a large producer of ethanol in Brazil which has stabilized revenues to a certain degree in recent quarters as energy prices have remained high. As referenced earlier, some large investors have been heavily investing in agriculture with the value of farmland in fertile areas increasing substantially. AGRO is no different. Currently Soros Fund Management has a $200 million stake (roughly 21.3% ownership) in the company, making AGRO the one of the largest small-cap positions the fund has. Capitalizing on the value of its land in the fourth quarter of 2012, AGRO sold a portion (51%) of its stake in the Santa Regina Farm located in Brazil for $13 million (around $7,000 per hectare). AGRO purchased the entire property for $2.3 million ($625 per hectare) in 2002 and is expected to sell its entire portion of the land for a combined $26.1 since the buyer exercised its option to purchase the remaining 49% for $13.1 million in July. When calculating the cost of improvements that AGRO put into Santa Regina, the company disclosed they realized an internal rate of return around 34%. In terms of earnings, AGRO recorded adjusted EBITDA of $41.3 million for Q2 2013 up 39.3% from same period 2012. The total 6 month 2013 EBITDA is also up 123.2% to $70.5 million. As indicated by its Q2 press release, despite low agricultural prices AGRO has increased margins by 12.3% in 2013. This is a very good sign moving forward. Despite the fact that 70% of its 2013 earnings are expected to come from sugar and sugar based products (ethanol), the value of the land and the growing demand for its food products is hard for an investor to pass up. Farmland has long been considered to be the ultimate safe haven investment and now appears to be a good time to own a piece of the “farm”. Commodity Portfolio I currently own AGRO, ADM and SCPZF.PK for farmland exposure. My current commodity portfolio holdings and percentages are below. As I had mentioned in previous articles , I am expecting inflation to tick up as we enter into 2014. In response, I have been transitioning into an overweight commodity portfolio. Over the last year I have been taking profits as the market as climbed back from lows in 2009. I recently took profits in a few positions including Microsoft ( MSFT ), The Sherwin-Williams Company ( SHW ), Omega Healthcare Investors ( OHI ) and Wells Fargo ( WFC ). From my perspective, the economic outlook doesn’t support continued investment in those companies. A softening U.S economy and high debt levels will push investors into safe havens and real assets. Going forward I will be looking to add investments on my watchlist and trim other positions. It will be interesting to see how an overweight commodity portfolio will perform relative to the rest of the market. Continue reading
Forest2Market Reports 2Q2013 Delivered Wood Fiber Prices For The Midwest
Aspen prices remained steady before ending the quarter on an upswing. Hardwood and softwood prices saw significant increases before tapering off to typical levels; average fuelwood prices steadily increased over the past three quarters. Midwest Delivered Price Benchmark shows average prices for aspen remained relatively steady throughout the second quarter of 2013. Hardwood and softwood prices were more volatile, displaying steep increases between the close of the first and the start of the second quarter. Residual chip pricing, both hardwood and softwood, has shown little volatility over the last nine months. Aspen pulpwood prices remained relatively constant throughout the quarter, starting at $41.03 per ton in April before dropping to $40.91 per ton in May. Aspen closed the quarter at a high of $41.57 per ton in June. Average hardwood pulpwood prices increased $4.68 per ton from March ($44.29 per ton) to April ($48.97 per ton). The spike was largely due to increased woodyard transfers and hauling from piledown areas as spring breakup came into full swing. Hardwood pulpwood prices fell to $46.70 per ton in May, and were back in line with winter price levels by June ($45.06 per ton). Softwood pulpwood prices also increased at the start of the spring season, coming in at a quarterly high of $49.03 in April (prices averaged $47.84 per ton in March). Prices then fell five percent over the quarter to $47.65 in May and $46.48 in June. The end of seasonal road restrictions and increased supply are expected to help moderate prices throughout the summer months. Peter Coutu , Forest2Market’s Business Lead for the Midwest and Northeast regions, noted the delivered price reports have added a degree of transparency previously absent in the Midwest market. “At Forest2Market, we strive to provide our customers with the information they need to make better-informed decisions and improve business performance. Since its introduction to the Midwest in the fourth quarter of 2012, the Delivered Price Benchmark has helped subscribers identify significant opportunities for adding value to their wood fiber supply chain.” In addition to aspen, hardwood and softwood delivered prices, the benchmark reports fuelwood pricing. Average prices for biomass have displayed a slow but steady increase since 4Q2012, the first quarter Forest2Market introduced its delivered price benchmark to the Midwest. Overall, the per ton average price for biomass increased $1.16, from $26.34 in Q4 2012 to $27.50 in Q2 2013. The increase is attributed to rising competition for raw material and seasonal factors. Forest2Market Delivered Price Benchmarks Forest2Market launched its Delivered Price Benchmark service for the Midwest in 2012. The report provides quarterly price information based on transaction-level data for aspen, hardwood, softwood and fuelwood. Forest2Market has provided its delivered price benchmark service in the US South since 2006 and the Pacific Northwest since 2007. About Forest2Market Forest2Market provides market pricing data as well as wood and fiber supply chain expertise to customers in the forest, wood and paper products, recovered fiber and bioenergy industries. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, the company also has offices in Eugene, Oregon and Appleton, Wisconsin. For more information, visit http://www.forest2market.com . ### Continue reading
