Michael Crist

Following is a statement from National Association of Realtors® Chief Economist Lawrence Yun on the proposal to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum and the potential impact on residential real estate: “International trade requires reciprocal understanding of mutual interests. Trade has to be fair and intellectual property rights have to be respected on both sides. Still, the proposed… Continue Reading Aluminum, steel tariffs impact on residential real estate

NAR released a summary of pending home sales data showing that January’s pending home sales pace was down 4.7 percent last month and down 3.8 percent from a year ago. Pending sales represent homes that have a signed contract to purchase on them but have yet to close. They tend to lead existing-home sales data… Continue Reading January 2018 Pending Home Sales

Despite stronger buyer interest in most of the country, extremely tight inventory conditions and weakening affordability caused both existing-home sales and pending sales to decline in January. Watch below or visit https://www.nar.realtor/videos/housing-minute to watch a 60-second, animated video from the National Association of Realtors® summarizing how the housing market performed in January, as well as… Continue Reading WATCH: Realtors® February Housing Minute

In a monthly survey of REALTORS®, the survey asks, “Compared to the original listing price, at how much of a net discount or net premium did the property sell?” According to a survey of REALTORS® who responded to the  January 2018 REALTORS® Confidence Index Survey, 34 percent of properties that closed in January 2018 sold… Continue Reading More Properties Were Sold At or Above List Price in January 2018

The following is a submitted Letter to the Editor by NAR President Elizabeth Mendenhall addressing the highly debatable claim made last week by a USA Today guest columnist that homeownership is a lousy investment. This letter to the editor in support of homeownership was published in today’s print edition of USA Today: (Click image to… Continue Reading NAR President Elizabeth Mendenhall to USA Today: Homeownership Is a Good Financial Investment

After finding a REALTOR®, being pre-approved for a mortgage is one of the most critical steps potential homebuyers should complete. This is essentially an assurance from a lender that the buyer is qualified to borrow up to a specific amount of money at a particular interest rate. It makes the buyer look more serious to… Continue Reading Story Ideas: Getting Pre-approved for a Mortgage

In a monthly survey of REALTORS®, the survey asks “Think of your most recent sales contract in the past 3 months that was either closed or terminated. Please explain how the deal concluded.” The responses indicate that more contracts are being settle on time. Of the REALTORS® who responded to the  January 2018 REALTORS® Confidence… Continue Reading Fewer Contract Settlement Delays Related to Appraisal Issues

By Melissa Dittmann Tracey, REALTOR® Magazine Supersized tiles are making over more floors, and this may be welcome news to many homeowners. Large format tiles means less grout to clean. The large tile trend may be partially motivated out of function, not just aesthetics. More homeowners are experimenting with larger tile sizes, whether with porcelain,… Continue Reading Hot Home Trend: Go Big With Your Tile

Edina, Minn. is one of the few suburbs I could see myself living in. It has decent public transportation, boutique storefronts, independent restaurants—and for an extra dose of kitsch—the first indoor shopping mall in America. It’s one of those old-growth ‘burbs, where the houses have character and the streets have sidewalks. Alas, it also has… Continue Reading No Sunset on Housing History

NAR released a summary of existing-home sales data showing that housing market activity this January fell 3.2 percent from last month and dipped 4.8 percent from last year. January’s existing home sales reached 5.3 million seasonally adjusted annual rate. The national median existing-home price for all housing types was $240,500 in January, up 5.8 percent… Continue Reading January 2018 Existing-Home Sales