Housing Predictions for 2018 New homes are expected to be a “primary driver of sales in 2018,” as 1.33 million housing starts are predicted next year—up from 1.22 million in 2017, according to Freddie Mac’s September Outlook report, which gauges future real estate activity. Total home sales are expected to increase about 2 percent from …
Tag: News
Sep 22
Fall May Be Best Time for Buyers to Move
Fall May Be Best Time for Buyers to Move A slower fall season in home buying may help more lingering home buyers to jump in. Prices are easing somewhat. For the second month in a row, the median price of an existing home dropped. It reached $253,500 in August, after reaching a record high …
Sep 21
Housing Shortages Constrain Existing-Home Sales
Housing Shortages Constrain Existing-Home Sales For the fourth time in five months, existing-home sales dropped as a shortage of homes for sale continues to plague the housing market. Strained supply levels of homes are making it that sales are unable “to break out,” according to the National Association of REALTORS®’ latest housing report, released …
Sep 20
Create a Strong Customer Service Culture
Create a Strong Customer Service Culture If you want to place customer satisfaction at the heart of your company or team, you need to take the time to train and support agents and to model behavior they expect customers to receive. Jeff Mowatt, customer service strategist and author, offers these five strategies that …
Sep 19
Home Flippers Face Hurdles in Tight Markets
Home Flippers Face Hurdles in Tight Markets In the second quarter of this year, 5.6 percent of all home sales were flips, according to ATTOM Data Solutions’ Q2 2017 U.S. Home Flipping Report. The report defines a flip as a property that is sold for the second time within a 12-month period. As housing …
Sep 18
Tax Reform Proposals Threaten Homeowners
Tax Reform Proposals Threaten Homeowners REALTORS® took their concerns over tax reform proposals to Capitol Hill on Wednesday, with Iona Harrison, chair of the National Association of REALTORS®’ Federal Taxation Committee, warning the Senate Finance Committee that they limit or nullify the tax incentives for home ownership. Harrison said the proposals would actually raise …
Sep 15
Consumers: Appraisals Still Falling Short
Consumers: Appraisals Still Falling Short Appraisals continue to lag homeowners’ price expectations, according to the latest Quicken Loans’ National Home Price Perception Index, which compares homeowners’ initial estimates and appraiser’s opinions of home values. Appraised values were 1.35 percent lower than homeowners’ expectations in August. That has narrowed from a 1.55 percent difference in July. …
Sep 14
YouTube’s Redesign Will Make Your Videos Look Better
YouTube’s Redesign Will Make Your Videos Look Better Video promotion—specifically on YouTube—is an integral part of many real estate professionals’ marketing, and smartphone videos are a quick, easy way to capture shareable content for your business. But vertical videos can look lost in YouTube’s player, which is formatted for horizontal shots so it ends …
Sep 13
Don’t Let Sellers Get Overconfident
Don’t Let Sellers Get Overconfident A severe inventory shortage may be allowing your clients to believe selling their homes will be quick and easy. That can lead to sellers who believe that they can do less to prep their homes for the market and that buyers will still be willing to pay top dollar. But …
Sep 12
A Sign That More Housing Inventory Is Coming
A Sign That More Housing Inventory Is Coming Homeowners who have decided to stay put in their current properties may soon be ready for a move, helping to relieve stubbornly tight housing inventory. The evidence is in Fannie Mae’s latest Home Purchase Sentiment Index, in which the number of consumers who say now is a …
Sep 11
Zero-Down Mortgage Offered for Doctors
Zero-Down Mortgage Offered for Doctors Medical professionals may be eligible for a mortgage up to $750,000 without a down payment or private mortgage insurance needed. PhysicianLoans, an Ohio-based mortgage lender, says its “Doctor Loan” is available to medical doctors, dentists, and veterinarians. The company lends in 18 states, including Georgia, Michigan, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Texas, …
Sep 08
Myths Sellers Believe About Pricing Their Home
Myths Sellers Believe About Pricing Their Home Many home sellers succumb to myths about home pricing that don’t match the reality of the housing market. Realtor.com® recently highlighted several of those common pricing myths, including: You won’t always make money on the sale of a home. Home sellers shouldn’t always assume they’ll walk away …
