Eight years ago, amidst rock bottom prices and unimaginable delinquency and foreclosure rates, the U.S. housing market was in shambles, and it was difficult to imagine that a turnaround was even possible, but eight years later, in spite of moderate U.S. economic growth, the news is good: there is increased demand for housing demand, with a surge in new construction, and declining foreclosure and delinquency numbers.

In 2013 the S&P/Case-Shiller seasonally-adjusted national home price index increased by 13.88% (12.49% inflation-adjusted), the most significant increase since March 2006. In Q4 2013 20 US cities, Western cities like Phoenix, Las Vegas and San Diego delivered impressive increases.

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Inexpensive Options

At the other end of the spectrum Rust Belt cities like Detroit, Cleveland, Buffalo, Toledo, and Akron still offer investors eye-popping median home prices under $40,000.

With a larger investment cities like Tampa, Florida and Mobile, Alabama, still offer hidden gems in the properties market that will turn a strong profit.

Market speculation, fueled by unscrupulous investors and the hype and promises of sellers seeking distressed exits – or businesses seeking to finance operations by making a quick sell – meant that many Aussie investors lost their life savings.

According to Consumer advocate and real estate writer Neil Jenman, the biggest red flag was American investors’ reluctance to invest in their own market. He asked, “If the US real estate market was so good, why aren’t the Americans buying it?” and added, “The reasons the Americans aren’t buying it is they know they’ve got an oversupply of properties.”

This “Wild West” mentality is in stark contrast to the approach taken by firms like West-Rock that advocate for strong due diligence (“doing your homework”) with each investment.

A Strategic Approach

Investors shouldn’t discount the potential offered by the U.S. real estate market but, instead, consider the steps taken by like Westrock that focus on searching for hidden gems in the real estate market which will turn a strong profit.