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
Design, Olympics, history, strategy, and focus. Apple’s new campus might be beautiful, but its occupants face challenges. Tiny house designs maximize use of space, but you don’t need to live in a tiny house to apply their ideas. Guys, this hotel is literally an arctic circle. Stròlic Furlàn – Davide Gabino/flickr/2014 3-D printed housing? Of… Continue Reading What We’re Reading: February 19-23
By NAR’s REALTOR Benefits® team You have many choices to make as a real estate professional—especially when it comes to investing in yourself and your new business. NAR’s REALTOR Benefits® Program is designed with you in mind, offering savings and unique offers on products and services just for REALTORS®. With more than 30 carefully selected… Continue Reading 3 Tech Benefits Helping New NAR Members Get Started
The REALTORS® Confidence Index (RCI) survey[1] gathers monthly information from REALTORS® about local real estate market conditions, characteristics of buyers and sellers, and issues affecting homeownership and real estate transactions.[2] This report presents key results about market transactions from January 2018. View and download the full report here. Market Conditions and Expectations The REALTORS® Buyer… Continue Reading REALTORS® Confidence Index Survey: January 2018 Highlights
Here is some insight on how Americans can invest their tax return and how first-time home buyers may look to invest long term. One of the major hurdles for potential home buyers is the downpayment. With a sizable tax refund, the average American would have a sizeable or partial downpayment depending on which region or… Continue Reading Using Tax Refund for a Downpayment
NAR’s yearlong commemoration of the 50th Anniversary of the Fair Housing Act is underway. The legislation, which first passed in 1968, prohibits discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status and national origin. For decades, Realtors® have raised awareness and supported a free, open market that embraces fairness and equal opportunity for all buyers… Continue Reading 50 years of Fair Housing Commemorated