Feb 26
Facebook Gets More Emotional with ‘Reactions’ Capture the loves and wows this week. Facebook is moving beyond just “likes.” The social network giant officially launched its emoji “Reactions” globally on Wednesday. Starting this week, if you hold down the “like” button on your mobile device or hover over the icon from your desktop, you’ll see …
Feb 25
Design Mistakes to Avoid With New Homes When building new, home buyers may be overwhelmed at the abundant choices and then suddenly find themselves in a designer role for their new home. Denver interior designers Lita Dirks and Tony Crasi, Akron, Ohio–based custom builders, offer up some of the biggest mistakes new buyers make as …
Feb 24
Bank of America Rolls Out 3% Loans Bank of America announced a new loan program to help low- and moderate- income borrowers qualify for a mortgage with down payments as low as 3 percent of the purchase price. The loans have financing available up to $417,000. Eligible borrowers must not earn more than the median …
Feb 23
Your New Buyer: The Landlord Parent Parents are increasingly helping their adult children financially purchase a home, finding themselves in a new role going from parent to landlord. College graduates struggling to pay rent or save up for a down payment in high-cost metros are turning to their parents for help. Parents are buying up …
Feb 19
When Retouching Listing Photos Goes Too Far An Australian real estate agent made headlines after recently posting photos of a home in Sydney under a blue sky backdrop and that was notably missing the giant water tower that hovers over the property. The photos raised questions over how much is too much when …
Feb 18
Remodels Can Cause Relationship Issues A new study from home design website Houzz find the stress of a remodeling project can cause couples to keep secrets from one another. The Remodeling & Relationships Survey found that 19 percent of the more than 1,500 survey respondents say they’ve made a significant design or purchase …
Feb 17
Pets Are the Best in Showings Are you doing what you can to market yourself as a pet-friendly agent? 65 percent of American households own a pet, and of those, 83 percent consider their pet to be a member of the family. These pet-popularity stats show why it’s important for real estate pros to …
Feb 16
How Low Will Mortgage Rates Go? For the sixth consecutive week, mortgage rates were on a downward spiral as the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage hovers near its 2015-low of 3.59 percent, Freddie Mac reports. “The 30-year mortgage rate dropped another 7 basis points this week to 3.65 percent,” says Sean Becketti, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. …
Feb 15
5 Dating Tips That Apply to Home Shopping Are your home shoppers desperately trying to find “the one?” Finding the perfect housing match can be like finding the perfect mate. For some Americans, this year’s Valentine may come in the form of a home, filled with shiny new fixtures and a great first …
Feb 12
What Has Non-Owners Afraid to Buy Almost half of renters surveyed by Bankrate.com say they haven’t purchased a home yet because they believe their credit isn’t good enough to qualify for a mortgage or they can’t afford a down payment. “A lot of people make assumptions that they can’t afford to buy based on …
Feb 10
Quicken Loans’ Super Bowl Ad Generates Buzz Quicken Loans’ Super Bowl 50 commercial promoting its Rocket Mortgage app has sparked discussion online, including questions about whether the lender is making getting a mortgage too easy now. In the 60-second commercial spot, the company touts: “You can get a mortgage from your phone.” The company …
Feb 09
Boost Curb Appeal with $100 in 4 Easy Steps Does your listing need a more inviting first impression from the outside? Stager Cora Sue Anthony with Antony Staging in Oakland, Calif., says you don’t have to break the bank to get an instant lift to a home’s curb appeal. In fact, in a …
