General News - Real Estate, Updates, News & Tips

Markets Seeing High Homebuilding Rates

Home buyers are struggling to find enough choices, and competition remains tight. But in some markets, new-home construction is ramping up and more homes are likely to help relieve some of the pressure in the near future.The National Association of REALTORS® recently identified the areas most likely to have the most homes coming to the market in the upcoming months. Researchers factored in housing starts and building permits (a gauge of future c

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Where Senior Home Buyers are Looking

Baby boomers are the wealthiest generation in the country, and they remain one of the most active in the housing market.LendingTree researchers recently analyzed mortgage purchase requests in 2020 on its platform across the 50 largest metros nationwide to identify where baby boomers are most likely to buy a home. Baby boomers, born between 1946 and 1964, are making up a larger share of markets like in Las Vegas, Tampa, Fla., and Phoenix, the stud

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Tall Barriers for First-Time Buyers

Student debt holders and minorities tend to purchase lower-priced homes, leading to lost wealth accumulation over time, according to a new working paper, “Mind the Gap: Home Price Differences By Race and Student Debt.” The research, which evaluates purchase price differences among home buyers from January 2014 to December 2017, was conducted by Jessica Lautz, vice president of demographics and behavioral insights at the National Association o

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New-Home Sales Reach 15-Year High

Buyers are increasingly turning to newly constructed homes for more options. Sales of new single-family homes surged 20.7% month over month in March to a 1.02 million seasonally adjusted annual rate, according to new data from the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Census Bureau. New-home sales are at the highest annual pace since September 2006.“Our members are seeing strong buyer traffic as continued low mortgage rates are he

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Homes with Pools are Selling at a Premium

Homes with pools have become the target of buyer envy since the pandemic began. Pool additions are soaring, and more house hunters say they want one in their backyard, according to HomeLight’s “Top Agent Insights for Spring 2021” report.Prior to the pandemic, many buyers were shunning properties with pools, which present maintenance issues and potential liability. The average pool can cost between $3,000 and $5,000 per year to maintain, acc

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Counties Experiencing Most, Least COVID-19 Economic Impact

The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a huge economic toll on states across the country to varying degrees.“Clearly, the housing market continues to surge, and things are looking up, more and more, for the U.S. economy in 2021, after a year of major setbacks in many sectors,” says Todd Teta, chief product officer with ATTOM Data Solutions. “But the pandemic still looms large and may pose a threat to the progress made so far, and by extension coul

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Million-Dollar Home Sales Outpace those in Other Price Points

Million-dollar listings are a hot commodity. The number of homes sold for more than $1 million jumped by 81% in February compared to a year earlier. Meanwhile, the number of homes sold for under $100,000 dropped 26% compared to a year ago, according to data from the National Association of REALTORS®.Wealthy Americans are taking advantage of low mortgage rates, increased savings, and the growth in remote work in order to hunt for larger homes.The

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Brands Builders Favor Most

New and advanced product features, along with product quality, price, availability, and green or sustainable features are top priorities for contractors and builders in choosing which products to use in new homes or remodels. Builder Magazine released its annual Brand Use Study, which lists the top products used by builders, developers, and contractors.More than 750 respondents nationwide shared their brand use practices within 52 building produc

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Most Common Obstacles to Closing on Time

The majority of home sale contracts are settling on time, but 26% faced delays in February while 6% were terminated completely, according to the latest REALTORS® Confidence Index. The following chart shows the most common issues sparking a delay to closing.The most common problems leading to a termination of the contract were related to appraisal issues (11%), obtaining financing (10%), and home inspection/environmental issues (9%).Nevertheless,

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Despite Moratorium, Foreclosure Activity on Steep Incline

Some housing analysts have grown concerned about what will happen to the real estate market when temporary foreclosure moratoriums are lifted. Will it spark a wave of new foreclosures and lead to a crisis?Already, foreclosure activity is on the rise, even though the moratoriums are still in place and the government has relaxed requirements for mortgage forbearance due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Foreclosure filings in March rose 5% compared to the

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