🎁 The Lending Letter 🏡

Boxing Day Edition: Post-Christmas Clarity, Pre-2026 Opportunity

Happy Friday! ☕ Welcome to December 26th—that weird limbo day where half the country is still in a food coma, the other half is returning ill-fitting sweaters, and you're sitting here wondering if that third piece of pie was really necessary. (It was.) 🥧

But here's the real gift: rates dropped another basis point overnight. While markets were closed yesterday for Christmas, the bond market is back to work today, and we're seeing 6.20%. That's down from 6.21% on Christmas Eve. Not a game-changer, but momentum is momentum. 📉

More importantly: you have exactly 5 business days left in 2025. If you've been thinking about making strategic financial moves before year-end, this is your wake-up call. Let's get into it.

🎯 The Post-Christmas Market Reality

Here's what's happening: The week between Christmas and New Year's is historically one of the slowest in real estate. Transaction volume drops, lenders have skeleton crews, and most people are mentally checked out. 🧠

But you know what that means? Opportunity. Sellers still on the market right now are either highly motivated or overconfident about their pricing. Lenders still working this week are looking to hit year-end quotas. And properties that didn't sell during the busy fall season? They're sitting there wondering why their phone isn't ringing. 📱

According to National Association of Realtors data, December closings account for only about 6-7% of annual volume. That's not because it's a bad time—it's because most people are distracted. Don't be most people. 🎯

💰 Lender Promos: Your Year-End Arsenal

🧠 Educational Corner: The Truth About Rate Locks

Let's talk about something most people misunderstand until it bites them: rate locks. And no, this isn't as boring as it sounds. This can literally save or cost you thousands. 💰

A rate lock is your lender's promise to honor a specific interest rate for a set period—usually 30, 45, or 60 days. Sounds simple, right? Wrong. There's strategy here.

🏘️ For Real Estate Investors: The Accelerated Depreciation Sprint

Okay, investors, this is for you. And it's time-sensitive, so pay attention. 👀

The Setup: You probably know rental properties depreciate over 27.5 years. Cool, steady tax deductions. But what if I told you that you could front-load years of depreciation into 2025? That's where cost segregation comes in. 🚀

A cost segregation study reclassifies parts of your property—things like flooring, appliances, lighting, landscaping—from 27.5-year property to 5, 7, or 15-year property. This lets you depreciate them faster, which means bigger deductions NOW instead of spread over three decades.

For STR Owners: Cost seg is even more powerful for short-term rentals because many furnishings and amenities qualify for accelerated depreciation. Speaking of which, if you need to furnish or upgrade your STR, our 0% interest funding partner can help you do it without touching your cash reserves. Because cash is king, especially in real estate investing. 👑

🎓 Personal Finance Hack: The Backdoor Roth Endgame

📊 Market Intel: What December Data Is Telling Us

Let's check in on the broader market, because context matters:

Inventory Continues Climbing:Realtor.com reports active listings are up about 15-20% year-over-year in most markets. That's good news for buyers—more options, more negotiating power. Sellers are starting to accept that 2021 pricing isn't coming back anytime soon. 📈

Days on Market Holding Steady: Properties are taking about 55-65 days to sell on average, according to Zillow's latest data. That's actually healthy—not the bidding war chaos of 2021, but not the stagnation of high-rate markets either. Normal is good. Normal is where deals get made. 🤝

The 2026 Rate Outlook: Fed officials are being cagey about rate cuts. Bond markets are pricing in maybe one or two cuts in 2026, but with inflation still above target, nothing's guaranteed. The Fed's latest statements suggest patience is their strategy. Translation: don't hold your breath for 4% mortgages anytime soon. 😬

Investor Activity: Cash buyers are still about 26-28% of transactions, which is down from pandemic highs but still elevated. According to NAR analysis, investors are being selective but they're definitely still in the game. They're focusing on markets with strong fundamentals—job growth, population growth, reasonable price-to-rent ratios. Be like them. 🧠

🎯 Should You Close Before Dec 31st?

Real talk: The only reason to rush a closing before year-end is if you have a legitimate tax strategy. Specifically:

✅ Yes, rush to close if:

• You need the mortgage interest deduction for 2025 taxes
• You're buying a rental and want depreciation to start in 2025
• You have capital gains to offset with real estate losses
• You're doing a 1031 exchange with a deadline

❌ Don't rush to close if:

• You're just afraid rates will rise (they might, they might not—crystal balls are expensive and usually wrong)
• You haven't done your due diligence on the property
• The seller is pushing you to waive inspections or protections
• You're letting FOMO drive decisions instead of math

According to consumer protection guidance, rushing a closing increases your risk of overlooking problems or agreeing to unfavorable terms. A few weeks of mortgage interest doesn't justify a bad deal. 🚫

🌟 The Bottom Line

Here's what December 26th really means: You're in the pocket between holidays where most people are disengaged, but the calendar doesn't care about your leftover ham. ⏰

Rates at 6.20% aren't spectacular, but they're workable. More importantly, the opportunities available this week won't be here in January. Tax strategies expire. Motivated sellers get re-motivated or pull listings. Year-end lender quotas reset. 🎯

If you've been sitting on the fence about any financial moves—buying property, refinancing, setting up that backdoor Roth, getting a cost segregation study—this is your moment. Not because of pressure, but because the math actually works in your favor RIGHT NOW. 📊

The best investors and financial operators don't wait for perfect conditions. They recognize good-enough conditions and execute while everyone else is distracted. That's literally the definition of finding alpha in markets. 💪

Stay focused, stay disciplined, and remember: fortune favors the bold. But fortune especially favors the bold who also did their homework and ran the numbers. Be both. 🚀