Keeping Current Matters

NOVEMBER 12, 2024

Over the past few years, some homeowners have decided to delay their move because they don’t want to sell and take on a higher mortgage rate on their next home.

Mortgages 291

Mortgages 291

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 19, 2024

We heard a lot about the need for millions of new homes during the run-up to the election, so I can imagine how shocked some people are to see today’s report on housing starts and permits at recession levels. Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari recently stated that housing demand is high so the clearance rate (mortgage rates) should be higher.

Construction 515

Construction Mortgages Land Sales 515

Real Estate News

NOVEMBER 24, 2024

The agency takes no position on the settlement’s approval but says it’s not an antitrust shield — and expresses concern over buyer agent agreements.

Agents 352

Agents 352

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 23, 2024

It has been almost two months since mortgage rates spiked again, and my initial thought was this would tank housing demand. We had a positive 18-week period with purchase applications before mortgage rates started rising in September. I figured those increases would produce the same weakness in purchase apps that we saw earlier in the year. However, surprisingly, demand has held up better than I anticipated.

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Mortgages As-is Sales Marketing 465

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Development

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 15, 2024

Jerome Powell , the chair of the Federal Reserve , said on Thursday that the U.S. economy is “not sending any signals that we need to be in a hurry to lower rates.” The statement was enough to raise mortgage rates to an even higher level, a sharp departure from the optimism lenders experienced during the September rally, which now seems like a distant memory.

Mortgages 456

Mortgages Equity Sales Marketing 456

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 7, 2024

Climate change is increasing the intensity and severity of natural disasters. It’s resulting in calls to reimagine the costs of homeowners insurance (Image generated by AI in Midjourney) As the planet warms and extreme weather intensifies, the rising cost of homeowners insurance is stopping real estate deals in their tracks. In just the past two months, two major hurricanes battered Florida, inflicting physical and financial damage that is projected to exceed $100 billion.

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Design Mortgages Lending As-is 442

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 30, 2024

Communities across the country, particularly those that are popular among retirees, are seeing an influx of older residents as a “silver tsunami” — based on population rather than housing inventory — prepares to wash over them. South Florida — already a popular retirement destination due to its warmer year-round climate — has been struggling with a higher concentration of older residents and is poised to take on even more, according to local reporting from The Palm Beach Post.

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As-is Mortgages 467

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 30, 2024

Despite initial concerns that tariffs would push mortgage rates up to 8% and reduce housing demand, this week has brought some encouraging news. The 10-year yield has remained stable at a crucial technical level and even reversed direction, resulting in improved mortgage rates. Additionally, housing demand has surprisingly held up, even with elevated mortgage rates.

Mortgages 485

Mortgages As-is Sales Marketing 485

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 20, 2024

Nearly three quarters of recent American home sellers said in a Clever survey that using a traditional real estate agent is the best way to sell. As real estate agents adjust to sweeping changes brought by the commission lawsuit settlement, a new report from discount brokerage Clever Real Estate reveals one thing hasn’t shifted: Americans still overwhelmingly trust full-service agents to sell their homes.

Agents 446

Agents Brokerage Sales Staging 446

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 1, 2024

Today’s jobs report showed the lowest job-growth data for the year at 12,000. You would think this would cause the 10-year yield and mortgage rates to go lower. At first, this did happen, but after more digestion of the data, not only did the bond market give up all the early morning gains, but it headed higher for the day, which confused many. So, I will give you my best explanation, but I need to show all the data that came out this week.

Mortgages 472

Mortgages Residential Construction Marketing 472

Speaker: Abdi Ali, Sr. Lease Accounting Consultant

Join this insightful webinar with industry expert Abdi Ali, who will discuss the challenges that can arise from managing lease accounting with spreadsheets! He will share real-world examples of errors, compliance issues, and risks that may be present within your spreadsheets. Learn how these tools, while useful, can sometimes lead to inefficiencies that affect your time, resources, and peace of mind.

Industrial

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 24, 2024

U.S. single-family rental properties posted rent-price growth of 2% during the year ending in September 2024, according to a recent CoreLogic report. That’s down from annual growth of 2.4% in August. The property data and solutions company reported that the year-over-year gain was well below the pre-pandemic single-family rental (SFR) growth rate of 3.5%.

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Principal Marketing 403

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 15, 2024

The housing bubble crash theory has failed once again as we approach the end of 2024, but it’s always important to know why something didn’t happen. This week, we got the updated New York Fed credit data report and it shows the strong position of homeowners — especially in comparison to the years before the Great Financial Crisis. This is the kind of information you need as we get close to Thanksgiving and share the dinner table with Uncle Dave who says (for the 13th year) that we’re seein

Loans 478

Loans Mortgages Lending As-is 478

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 14, 2024

Vetted by HousingWire | Our editors independently review the products we recommend. When you buy through our links, we may earn a commission. While new social media platforms seem to pop up all the time, Facebook remains a tried-and-true platform for real estate agents to grow their business in a variety of ways. Joining and engaging with groups of fellow Realtors on Facebook should be a key tool in every agent’s toolbox.

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Agents Brokerage Industrial Branding 403

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 13, 2024

With fluctuating mortgage rates and economic pressure in the housing market, foreclosure activity ramped up in October 2024. According to real estate data provider Attom , homebuyers may face more challenges heading into 2025. Attom released its October 2024 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report on Tuesday. It showed that 30,784 properties had foreclosure filings last month.

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Real-estate owned Mortgages Closing Banks 409

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Agents

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 14, 2024

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) this week published a report assessing the performance of government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in reaching their single-family housing goals. The CBO found that the GSEs “met or exceeded” nearly all goals over a four-year period from 2018 to 2022. The CBO analyzed data from the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) data in its report.

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Loans Finance Mortgages Development 442

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 1, 2024

Vetted by HousingWire | Our editors independently review the products we recommend. When you buy through our links, we may earn a commission. Whether you’re looking to start a career in real estate, already have one or are involved in real estate transactions, you may find yourself wondering about industry terminology and job titles. The industry acronyms alone look like alphabet soup.

Agents 419

Agents Brokerage Purchase and sale agreement Commercial 419

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 22, 2024

As the U.S. housing market slowed down in the third quarter due to rising home prices and higher mortgage rates , investor purchases also ramped down, according to a new report by Redfin. The Seattle-based brokerage found that real estate investor purchases dropped by 2.3% year over year in Q3 2024, representing a small change after four years of fluctuations.

Investor 387

Investor Residential Brokerage Mortgages 387

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 25, 2024

There’s nothing quite like an 11th-hour twist. On Sunday evening, less than 48 hours before the National Association of Realtors ’ (NAR) commission lawsuit settlement agreement is set to head for final approval, the Department of Justice (DOJ) filed its long-awaited statement of interest in the Sitzer/Burnett suit. DOJ notes in the filing that it did not participate in the litigation or in the negotiation of the proposed settlement.

Brokerage 481

Brokerage MLS Residential Agents 481

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Sales

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 21, 2024

Home prices firmed up in today’s existing home sales report , but we caught on to this trend two months ago with our Housing Market Tracker. Traditionally, home prices soften in the second half of the year and I had counted on this for my price forecast , which predicted 2.33% home-price growth for 2024. However, that didn’t happen. The difference is mortgage rates: even with inventory growing at a healthy clip this year, mortgage rates just heading down toward 6% for a brief period of tim

Mortgages 380

Mortgages Finance Sales As-is 380

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 26, 2024

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) has set a new baseline conforming loan limit of $806,500 for one-unit properties in 2025, authorizing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to purchase mortgages up to this amount. The new limit reflects a 5.2% increase over the current $766,550 cap for 2024, aligning with home price trends. The adjustment indicates a weaker housing market this year, driven by still-elevated mortgage rates.

Loans 409

Loans Finance Mortgages Banks 409

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 5, 2024

In efforts to escape “sky-high real estate prices” and rising costs of living, California residents are favoring Arizona as a top relocation destination behind only Texas. That’s according to a report released Monday by StorageCafe , a national marketplace for storage space and an affiliate of real estate data provider Yardi. The report reviewed U.S.

Technology 334

Technology Industrial As-is Finance 334

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 21, 2024

Vetted by HousingWire | Our editors independently review the products we recommend. When you buy through our links, we may earn a commission. In this article, we’ve gathered 30 real estate text message scripts designed to help you connect with leads, nurture relationships, and get more deals to the closing table this coming year. When it comes to selling real estate, communication and timing can make or break your success.

Closing 319

Closing Pre-approval Marketing As-is 319

Speaker: Sarah Santa Ana, Real Estate Coach, Move4Free Realty

Networking is one of the crucial elements in every real estate organization's success. Both agents and real estate companies need to maintain robust networking links. This is why social media is essential for any real estate professional! Social media enables you to stay in touch with your present clients, maintain connections with your past clients, and engage potential customers and investors.

Agents

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 19, 2024

The Bipartisan Congressional Real Estate Caucus is calling on the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) to cease its pilot program for title insurance waivers until the program is vetted and the agency seeks public input on it. The caucus expressed this view in a letter written by Reps. Lou Correa (D-Calif.), Mark Alford (R-Mo.), Tracey Mann (R-Kan.) and Brittany Pettersen (D-Colo.) and sent to FHFA Director Sandra Thompson on Monday.

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Title Title search Closing costs Loans 367

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 11, 2024

Zillow is moving full speed ahead with an ambitious expansion of its mortgage business, leveraging its housing tech innovations to potentially reshape how modern homebuyers finance homes. In its third-quarter earnings report, Zillow Home Loans revealed an impressive data point: mortgage revenue increased 63% year over year in the third quarter to $39 million, which is primarily due to an 80% year-over-year increase in purchase loan origination volume to $812 million.

Mortgages 401

Mortgages Loan Officer Loans Agents 401

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 14, 2024

With the election behind us, the industry is refocused on building momentum and driving growth in 2025. Next year, real estate brokers and team leaders can adapt, innovate and truly thrive in the new market. With these unique strategies, brokers can achieve sustainable success while staying ahead in a competitive market. Here’s four strategies for leaders looking to maximize growth and position their brokerages and teams for success. 1.

Brokerage 356

Brokerage Technology Agents Closing 356

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 13, 2024

The U.S. finds itself in a “troubling environment” for bolstering Black homeownership as evidenced by two key — and lagging — metrics. This is according to the 2024 State of Housing in Black America (SHIBA) report published this month by the National Association of Real Estate Brokers (NAREB). “The two best-performing demographics for African Americans — Black female-headed households and millennials — both declined in home sales in 2023,” the organization explained in an announcement of the rep

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Pre-approval Mortgages Loans Finance 318

Speaker: Trey Willard, Realtor/Team Leader at Keller Williams Realty, Inc.

In order to create continued success in today’s real estate market, realtors need to utilize an arsenal of technology that will increase their efficiency and presence on social media. Using technology to manage your prospects and tap into their needs through websites, social media, and other channels is critical for real estate success in 2022 and beyond.

Agents

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 5, 2024

The COVID-19 pandemic impacted the housing market like no event since the 2008 financial crisis, but some of the trends induced by the pandemic are starting to reverse. That’s evident in the annual profile of home buyers and sellers from the National Association of Realtors (NAR), which provides data on dozens of real estate trends. When the pandemic began in the spring of 2020, wealthy residents of urban centers like New York City and San Francisco packed their bags for rural areas and small to

Construction 391

Construction Marketing As-is Finance 391

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 12, 2024

As 2025 approaches, state-funded down payment assistance (DPA) programs are helping veterans , service members and surviving spouses achieve their dreams of homeownership. This comes from a new survey by Down Payment Resource — a nationwide database designed to connect prospective homebuyers to financial assistance opportunities. The study analyzed DPA programs from more than 1,300 housing finance agencies, municipalities, nonprofits and other organizations.

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Mortgages Finance Loans Design 322

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 26, 2024

After a year of strong results, sales of newly built homes took a major step back last month. Data released Tuesday by the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) shows new-home sales in October clocking in at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 610,000 — a 17.3% decline compared to September and a 9.4% decline year over year.

Sales 354

Sales MLS Mortgages Development 354

Housing Wire

NOVEMBER 22, 2024

Vetted by HousingWire | Our editors independently review the products we recommend. When you buy through our links, we may earn a commission. The real estate market is constantly shifting, and today’s market calls for agents to return to the more tried-and-true marketing strategies. While the post-COVID market saw homes selling at record speeds, recent changes have shown us the importance of foundational tactics for success.

Agents 309

Agents Branding Land As-is 309

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