The Power of Flowers in Your Listings Forty-eight percent of the country has recently been covered in snow, according to the National Weather Service. If the cloudy skies and muted winter landscape have your listing looking ho-hum, try some greenery to get potential buyers thinking about spring. According to a Harvard University study, seeing flowers first …
Tag: News
Feb 23
Spring May Not Be Pretty for First-Time Buyers
Spring May Not Be Pretty for First-Time Buyers A shortage of homes and surging prices are hitting first-time buyers particularly hard heading into the spring season. The share of first-time homeowners dropped to 29 percent of all existing-home sales in January, down from 33 percent a year ago, according to the latest housing report from …
Feb 22
Home Sales Off to Sluggish Start
Home Sales Off to Sluggish Start Blame it on the housing shortage: Existing-home sales posted their largest declines on an annual basis in more than three years, the National Association of REALTORS® reported Wednesday. All major regions of the U.S. saw monthly and annual sales decline in January. “The utter lack of sufficient housing supply …
Feb 20
Climbing Mortgage Rates Reach 4-Year High
Climbing Mortgage Rates Reach 4-Year High Mortgage rates continued to inch higher this week, marking the sixth consecutive week for borrowing cost increases for home shoppers. “Wednesday’s Consumer Price Index report showed higher-than-expected inflation; headline consumer price inflation was 2.1 percent year-over-year in January, two-tenths of a percentage point higher than the consensus forecast,” explains …
Feb 19
First-Time Buyers May Have it Easiest Here
First-Time Buyers May Have it Easiest Here First-time home buyers are entering the market under tight inventory conditions and rising home prices. But not all cities are posing a challenge for those looking to break in to homeownership. A new study by LendingTree ranks the top cities for first-time home buyers in the nation’s 100 …
Feb 16
‘Tiny Homes’ May Have a Wider Buyer Pool
‘Tiny Homes’ May Have a Wider Buyer Pool The tiny-home movement has been a popular topic among design television shows in recent years, but there was some debate about whether it was truly a lasting trend or not. But a new survey confirms that consumers are definitely intrigued by smaller homes, often described as less …
Feb 15
Market Volatility Giving Buyers Cold Feet?
Market Volatility Giving Buyers Cold Feet? It seems a 1,000-plus point drop in the stock market last week mixed with rising interest rates may have been enough to give homeowners and buyers the jitters. Overall mortgage applications last week dipped 4.1 percent week over week on a seasonally adjusted basis, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported …
Feb 13
3 Ways to Improve Customer Connections
3 Ways to Improve Customer Connections How do you create more lasting connections with customers? It may come down to becoming a better acquaintance with your client, working harder to anticipate their needs, and showing more empathy. RISMedia recently wrote about enhancing customer interactions, including: Get to know your customer better. Track all interactions a …
Feb 12
Mortgage Rates Keep On Pressing Higher
Mortgage Rates Keep On Pressing Higher The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage reached its highest average since December 2016, Freddie Mac reports. This is the fifth consecutive week that mortgage rates have been on the rise, increasing borrowing costs for home shoppers heading into the spring buying season. “Following a turbulent Monday,financial markets settled down with the …
Feb 09
Utility Bills May Be Getting Cheaper
Utility Bills May Be Getting Cheaper Utility companies will pay less tax from a recent tax overhaul, and many are planning to pass those savings on to customers. Rate changes may shave a few dollars off the average customer’s bill in the coming months, The Wall Street Journal reports. The federal government slashed its corporate tax …
Feb 08
How to Tweet for Dummies
How to Tweet for Dummies If you feel like you’re operating your Twitter account in a vacuum, where your tweets enter the abyss of your followers’ newsfeed never to be seen again, then it might be time for a new strategy. NetBase, a social media analytics platform, offers four tips for brands to effectively use …
