Preparing for typical winter weather can be hard for homeowners, but dealing with dangerous winter conditions, such as blizzards or extreme cold, can be overwhelming. The key to surviving extreme weather is preparation. Homeowners should trim tree branches to prevent roof damage; roof tiles, shutters and siding should be secured; and gutters cleaned. Homeowners should… Continue Reading Story Ideas: Preparing homes for extreme weather
Because there are still some hard-keyboard smart phone enthusiasts out there, the newest Blackberry will be formally launched on February 25. Facebook is starting to put advertisements into Messenger, forcing pretty much everyone to wonder if the good old days of paying for software were better. Want to encourage your kids to explore science, technology,… Continue Reading Blackberry Is Back; Messenger Is Making Room For Ads; More in Five for Wednesday
This blog post was written by Managing Director of Housing Research, Danielle Hale, and Data Analyst, Hua Zhong. You probably know that home closings predominate on Fridays and the end of the month. Here is the data to back up your intuition: As we start the New Year, this is a good time to take a… Continue Reading EHS in 2016 by the Numbers – Part 1 – Popular Closing Dates
WASHINGTON (January 24, 2017) — Existing-home sales closed out 2016 as the best year in a decade, even as sales declined in December as the result of ongoing affordability tensions and historically low supply levels, according to the National Association of Realtors®. Total existing-home sales 1, which are completed transactions that include single-family homes, townhomes,… Continue Reading Existing-Home Sales Slide in December; 2016 Sales Best Since 2006
REALTORS®reported stronger homebuying demand in 2016 compared to 2015, according to the December 2016 REALTORS® Confidence Index Survey Report, a monthly survey of REALTORS® about their sales activity and local market conditions.[1] For the year 2016, the REALTORS® Buyer Traffic Index registered at 63 (60 in 2015), indicating that more respondents viewed buyer traffic conditions… Continue Reading REALTORS® Reported Stronger Housing Demand Amid Tight Supply in 2016
A dip in existing sales activity in December (2.8 percent) was not enough to keep 2016 from being the strongest year of sales (5.45 million) in exactly a decade. During this morning’s press conference, Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, attributed the strong 2016 to the ongoing good health of the labor market and the exceptionally… Continue Reading Existing-Home Sales Dip in December
On Friday, the new administration suspended a 25 basis point fee reduction that the past administration announced on the 9th of January. NAR research estimated that the fee reduction would have benefited 750,000 to 850,000 homebuyers in 2017 whose mortgages were backed by the FHA. In addition, it would have opened homeownership to an additional… Continue Reading FHA Fee Reduction On Hold
Lee Davenport By Lee Davenport Listing Leader — Is this title on your New Year’s resolution list? How about on your business plan for this year? I’m here to tell you, that you can make it happen. Here are four considerations to help, but only if you’re willing to subscribe to the notion of “out… Continue Reading Resolve to Stop Losing Listings
By Melissa Dittmann Tracey, REALTOR® Magazine The Modern Farmhouse is on trend in home design this year, according to a newly released survey by Next Day Blinds. We may have Joanna and Chip Gaines from the HGTV hit show “Fixer Upper” to thank for the surge in popularity of this rustic style. Photo by Gardner… Continue Reading The Number One Design Style for 2017 Is …
Data, technology, yoga, Cubs, nature, listings, moving, travel, and amenities. What applications do you see for this beyond entertainment? Would you use the augmented reality feature now available on Realtor.com? One step forward, two steps back. We bet the German language has a word for the satisfying feeling of watching things like this in slow… Continue Reading What We’re Reading: January 16-20