Talk to a Realtor® in much of the country right now and they’ll all echo a similar narrative: homes are selling quickly because there are not enough listings on the market. It’s why existing sales stumbled in February and price growth accelerated to its fastest pace in over a year (7.7 percent). Even more staggering, inventory… Continue Reading Existing-Home Sales Hit Rough Patch in February
Photo courtesy Paint Quality Institute Many do-it-yourself painters spend hours selecting the perfect paint colors, but give far less thought to the sheen they’ll use. That’s short sighted, according to Debbie Zimmer, spokesperson for the Paint Quality Institute. “Paint sheen affects not only the initial appearance of a paint job, but also its long-term performance,” says… Continue Reading How to Select the Right Sheen to Your Paint
Economic activity continued on an upward trend in the last quarter of 2016, but at a slower pace, as the first estimate of real gross domestic product (GDP) from the Bureau of Economic Analysis documented. Preliminary figures indicated that GDP rose at an annual rate of 1.9 percent, on par with the average 1.9 percent… Continue Reading Demand for Apartments Remains Solid in 2017
Listings, fashion, life hacks, office temp, weather, technology, cookies, and the web. A regal home has entered the market at a bargain price for someone. Twitter, we agree with you. Hard pass. Do you have any tricks to raising teens? This arrangement might be helpful. We seriously doubt the validity of this method. What do… Continue Reading What We’re Reading: March 13-17
On St. Patrick’s Day, it’s a tradition for many to raise a glass and toast the luck o’ the Irish. For potential buyers without the luck of the Irish on their side, the number 10 may be what brings them the most good fortune when it comes to real estate and finding the perfect home. Why is… Continue Reading Lucky numbers in homebuying
There’s been a lot of talk within the industry about appraisals lately, especially on issues like turnaround times, higher and/or “rush fees,” and the challenge of bringing new appraisers into the profession. The National Association of Realtors® just released fresh survey data from over 2,000 appraisers that offers some fresh evidence of what’s driving the conversation.… Continue Reading Appraiser Survey Shows Challenges Remain for Practitioners
You may recall a previous post about Sue Dietz, an Iowa real estate agent whose identity was being used by scammers to send fraudulent emails to other real estate professionals all over the country. The emails, which were sent from an email address using Dietz’s name, offered a bogus client referral. Anyone who responded to… Continue Reading 3 Actions to Take After You Receive a Bogus Email
Millions of households are mortgage-ready but don’t even try to buy because they can’t come up with a downpayment. And yet, remarkably, hundreds of downpayment assistance programs around the country are largely untapped. Why the disconnect? Small To be sure, many households won’t qualify for downpayment assistance, because they simply earn too much money. But… Continue Reading Money’s Available to Buy But Many Renters Don’t Know It
A hip-looking website and a realistic-looking payment invoice. Real estate professionals in Florida were recently hit with a scam in which they were instructed to pay a fee to maintain their membership listing with the Florida Board of REALTORS®, but there is no such organization. What’s concerning about this latest scam to hit the real… Continue Reading In Real Estate, Scammers Are Getting Unbelievably Tricky
WASHINGTON (March 15, 2017) — Multiple years of uninterrupted job gains and hope that the best is yet to come in 2017 are igniting consumer confidence across the country, and especially in rural and middle America, according to new consumer survey findings from the National Association of Realtors®. The survey additionally found a growing disparity… Continue Reading NAR HOME Survey: Economic, Financial Optimism Surges; Renters Lukewarm About Buying