Rising mortgage rates and home prices have made ownership less affordable, especially for first-time buyers, though a handful of metros – including North Port-Sarasota and Palm Bay-Melbourne –have seen affordability increase over the past year.
Most wireless internet access goes through private routers, which makes them a one-stop shop for cyber-attackers who want to uncover all your passwords at once.
With a 30-day waiting period before NFIP flood insurance kicks in, owners should apply now if they want coverage before the June 1 start of hurricane season.
A do-it-yourself home kit arrives on flatbed trucks and even includes nails, so landowners can save on construction costs if willing to invest sweat equity.
A real estate pro's job is to guide buyers through the process – even if that means telling them to wait until they can afford the higher costs of homeownership.
As the recession ended, almost all Fla. cities were an investment opportunity. But now a handful of smaller cities see the most dramatic home price increases.
What were the eye-openers at the recent NAR Broker Summit? For one, tech has changed. The latest is no longer a strong marketing tool, but "big data" may help some companies thrive. And watch statistics: Your market has changed substantially.
Innovations like moveable walls, smart technology, multifunction furniture and space-saving features are the future, according to a new exhibit at the National Building Museum.
The latest Urban Land Institute (ULI) Real Estate Economic Forecast predicts modest fluctuations across the board for 27 economic/real estate indicators. The three-year forecast is completed semi-annually, surveying over 48 economists and analysts at 36 real estate organizations. A leading concern? Rising interest rates. ULI forecasts interest rates to be 0.4 percent higher in 2018 […]
The government has handed down a $1 billion penalty to Wells Fargo for abusive consumer practices related to its administering of auto insurance and extensions on mortgage rate locks. In addition to the fine, the bank has been ordered to remediate affected consumers and implement improved practices. In 2017, Wells Fargo acknowledged it had charged […]
Fewer homes are priced within reach today, according to the REALTORS® Affordability Distribution Curve and Score from the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) and realtor.com®. Affordability is being challenged by increasing prices and rates, the report states. Affordability is most untenable in California, Hawaii, Montana, Oregon, Rhode Island and Washington, D.C.—all with “Affordability Scores” considerably […]
If 2017 is any indication, buyers will be against an all-out frenzy this spring and summer. In 2017, the median listing was snatched up in 81 days—a record, according to data from Zillow. Competition was fiercest in June, with 73 days on-market for the median listing. (Closings are included in the timeline.) In almost every […]
Home-building in March picked up, with housing starts on a 1.9 percent surge and totaling 1.32 million, according to the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Single-family starts waned, down 3.7 percent to 867,000. Multifamily starts (five units or more) came in at 439,000. “The modest decline in single-family […]
Affordability is a growing problem—but for black buyers, it has created a deep disadvantage over other groups, according to an analysis newly released by Zillow. Based on the black household income (a median $39,466), and without exceeding the 30 percent housing spend standard, black buyers could afford just 55.3 percent of listings nationwide in 2017—a […]
Zillow announced on Thursday it is becoming a buyer and seller through its Instant Offers platform, beginning in Las Vegas and Phoenix with Premier Agents this spring. Arik Prawer, formerly chief integration officer at Invitation Homes, has been appointed chief business development officer to oversee the participation of Zillow on the platform. On Instant Offers, […]
Members Voice Opinions Prompting Further Consideration Days after the announcement that the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) branding had been redesigned—including the introduction of a new REALTOR® “R”—the organization has announced it is “pausing its implementation” after evaluating feedback from its members. Following the announcement on Monday that NAR was rolling out the newly revised […]
Appraisals are closing in on estimates by homeowners, just 0.36 percent below what was expected, according to the March Quicken Loans National Home Price Perception Index (HPPI). The Quicken Loans National Home Value Index (HVI) shows appraised values rose 7.64 percent year-over-year. “This month’s HPPI is great news for homeowners who may be thinking of […]
The climate is gradually moving toward spring-like temperatures…but it is burning up in housing, with prices rising 8 percent year-over-year, according to a new realtor.com® report. The climb in March sent the median list price to $280,000—above the prior record $275,000 from July 2017. Based on data from realtor.com, there were 1.29 million March listings […]
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