It came very apparent when looking at NAR’s Pending Home Sales Index that tight inventory conditions were weighing down on contract activity this spring and early summer. The three month decline in pending sales from March to May has now translated to July being the second straight monthly sales decline. As NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun… Continue Reading Inventory Crunch Stalls Sales in July
Fannie Mae recently raised the cap on its maximum debt-to-income (DTI) ratio to 50 percent. Will it help? NAR Research queried lenders about this change in the Survey of Mortgage Originators for the 2nd quarter of 2017. Lenders were optimistic about the change, but some will maintain overlays to mitigate potential risks. In July, Fannie… Continue Reading Lenders Optimistic on DTI Change
Most home sellers know the importance of keeping their house clean and clutter free while it is on the market, but sometimes, taking a few extra steps can make all the difference. That is where staging comes in. According to a report from the National Association of REALTORS®, 62 percent of seller’s agents say that… Continue Reading Story Idea – Selling a Home? Consider Staging!
Android users rejoice. Oreo is here, and it looks impressive. Get the scoop directly from Google. In the race to dominate voice-controlled e-commerce, Amazon will have a formidable challenger: Google and Walmart have joined forces to bring shopping to Google Home and Google Assistant devices. A new app “scrambles” what your smartphone’s key pad looks… Continue Reading Android Oreo Is Here; Amazon’s Got New Competition; More in Five For Wednesday
WASHINGTON (August 22, 2017) – Keeping up with technology, maintaining sufficient inventory, competition from nontraditional participants and profitability are among the biggest challenges for real estate firms, according to the National Association of Realtors® 2017 Profile of Real Estate Firms. Conversely, for a third year in a row, the survey found the vast majority of firms… Continue Reading Technology, Inventory and Competition Among Firms’ Top Challenges: Realtors® Survey
Alexis Craig By Alexis Craig Why do you think we don’t make our failures public? This is easy to see on social media. Pictures of couples on the beach in Punta Cana, our friend getting promoted to a management position, and our co-worker’s weekly production numbers dominate our newsfeeds. And we can’t help but ask… Continue Reading How to Use Failure to Grow Your Business
Buying and moving into a new home always comes with stress, but moving with children can add completely different sets of needs and hassles. The National Association of REALTORS®’ 2017 Moving With Kids Report explores the unique experience of homebuying with kids. When it comes to selling a home, the main reason people with children… Continue Reading Families with Children Want Bigger Homes
While The National Flood Insurance Program’s (NFIP) authority to write flood insurance expires at the end of next month, NAR conducted an analysis to estimate the impact of NFIP lapses on home sales. Based on the latest available data, NAR has put together an estimate of the number of home sale closings that will be… Continue Reading How Lapses of the National Flood Insurance Program Affect Home Sales
An increasing share of foreign buyers[1] are purchasing property in a central city/suburban area, while fewer foreign buyers are purchasing property in a resort area, according to NAR’s recently released 2017 Profile of International Activity in U.S. Residential Real Estate. The percentage of foreign buyers purchasing property in a resort area has declined, while only… Continue Reading More Foreign Buyers Purchased in Cities/Suburbs Than in Resort Areas
Policy, pricing, eclipse, the future, driving, wellness, and success. “Two Pizza Rule?” Sounds like a recipe for productivity to us! Graffiti doesn’t always have this impact on property value, but this street art is certainly making a mark on prices. Speaking of house prices, this one didn’t sell, so they…raised the price? The eclipse is… Continue Reading What We’re Reading: August 14-18