General News - Real Estate, Updates, News & Tips

Contract Signings Rise as More Listings Hit the Market

Despite mortgage rates near 7%, home buyers plow ahead with more options on the market. Read more from NAR’s latest housing report.Home buyers have more housing choices this summer, and home sellers may find stiffer competition on the market. Pending home sales rose nearly 5% in June as more house hunters went under contract for a home purchase. All four major regions of the U.S. posted monthly gains in transactions, according to the National A

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3 Ways AI is Changing Proptech

AI is improving building design, operations and space planning. Here’s how.It’s no small wonder that AI has been quickly absorbed into proptech. Real estate and facilities management have always embraced tools that drive efficiency in the built environment. But it also means that property managers need to accelerate their digital strategy to keep pace.  “We are owners of concrete, steel and earth, but we have to transform into a tech b

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Top Home Features Swaying Buyer Purchase Decisions

A new study suggests touting these property upgrades in your listing description to achieve a quicker sale.Vanity lighting, butcher block countertops and electric vehicle chargers are home features to rave about, according to a new study(link is external) from Frontdoor, a home maintenance company. Researchers honed in on about 100 trending home features and identified listings with these items to see if those homes tended to sell faste

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U.S. CRE Pricing Starts to Gain After 18 Months of Losses

U.S. commercial property prices arrested their series of declines in June after a year and a half of losses, MSCI Real Assets reported Thursday. The RCA CPPI National All Property Index was unchanged from a year ago and rose 0.6% from May. All sectors posted improved annual trends in June, with the exception of apartments.Industrial was again the best-performing property type, with prices up 8% from a year ago and close to 50% above the levels at

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Home Buyers Remain Reluctant, Even with Lower Rates this Month

Mortgage rates are now lower than a year ago, but house hunters remain cautious.Mortgage rates have been holding mostly steady this month, after dropping nearly a half percent from their peak earlier this year, Freddie Mac reports. “Despite these lower rates, buyers continue to pause, as reflected in tumbling new and existing home sales data,” says Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist.The National Association of REALTORS® reported thi

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Market is Shifting Slowly in Buyers’ Favor

Existing-home sales fell again last month, even as home prices continued to surge to record highs. But opportunities for buyers are opening up. Read more from NAR’s latest housing report.Median home sales prices have never been higher, and that might be making home buyers skittish—but this may not persist for much longer, the National Association of REALTORS®’ latest housing report suggests.Existing-home sales, reflecting completed transac

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Mortgage Rates are Falling...

Loan applications for home purchases remain sluggish, despite recent drops in borrowing costs.The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage fell to a 6.77% average this week, its lowest level since mid-March and the biggest weekly drop in basis points since May, Freddie Mac reports.The drop in rates so far has not prompted a flood of home buyers into the market. The Mortgage Bankers Association reported this week that the number of people applying for a loan t

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Despite Declines, Rents are Still $305 Higher than Pre-2020 Trends

Despite 11 months of declines, Realtor.com said the typical renter is paying $305 more monthly for an apartment compared to 2019. The greatest rent increases are in Florida and the Midwest Despite the median asking rent declining for 11 consecutive months, renters are still shelling out $305 more per month for a 0-2 bedroom unit than they would have pre-2020. According to Realtor.com’s latest market report, the median asking rent in June decli

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The Pros and Cons of Buying Down Interest Rates

Interest rate buydowns involve a trade-off between upfront costs and long-term affordability. Clever CEO Luke Babich offers strategies to help clients make the choice Buying down interest rates (also known as buying points) may seem counterintuitive to many people. After all, why would a homebuyer willingly commit to bringing more cash to the table at closing or sign on for a larger loan?In fact, there are some excellent reasons buying

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Foreign Home Buyers Recede from U.S. Market as Prices Soar

The number of homes international buyers purchased fell to the lowest level on record in the last year. Find out which markets are still attracting global attention.International home buyers are backing away from the U.S. housing market amid high home prices and low inventory, according to the National Association of REALTORS®’ new report, 2024 International Transactions in U.S. Residential Real Estate. Foreign buyers purchased 36% fewer

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