National foreclosure filings, which include default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions, were up 9 percent from April to May but down 4 percent from May 2011, according to new data from RealtyTrac. For May, one in every 639

Contract failures have been one of the more recurring problems in real estate in recent months, and with roughly a third of agents experiencing them, they have easily garnered a reputation among Realtors as one of the main inhibitors to

The shadow inventory decreased by 14.8 percent year-over-year in April, according to new data from analytics firm CoreLogic. Since April 2011, the shadow inventory has fallen by more than 300,000 units to its present level of 1.5 million, which

Extroverts make up 60 to 75 percent of the human population, and occasionally, it can seem like introverts – the other, more subtle side of the equation – are left behind. Which is a shame, because even though real

Last week, the mortgage markets reflected what would appear to be an ideal homebuying environment; mortgage applications were up 18 percent, reaching their highest level since 2009. Yet, when looking at big numbers like that, it’s easy to forget this

Total international residential sales in the U.S. was $82.5 billion in the past year ending on March 2012, a 24 percent increase from 2011. According a new report from the National Association of Realtors, a number of factors have

It’s election season, and polls seem to be more prevalent than the cherry trees in Washington, D.C., but a new Q2 2012 survey from HomeGain has some interesting findings for how the real estate community views the president –

Acceleration clause. Addendum. Amortization. Assignment. Oh yes, we’re talkin’ real estate jargon – and we haven’t even gotten through the A’s yet! Real estate is one of those industries that can lay on the jargon pretty thick sometimes, and

The fifth season of “Mad Men” concluded on Sunday, and in the show’s trademark fashion, it mixed business and pleasure in ways that only Don Draper, Roger Sterling and co. are capable of doing. But although Mr. Draper may

Social networking is one of those areas that can seem impossible to master, a style of marketing so broad that a coherent strategy is all but impossible. But as with most concepts that appear daunting, social networking can be

The parent company of Realogy, which owns Century 21, Coldwell Banker, Better Homes and Sotheby’s International Realty, is hoping to raise $1 billion today in an initial public offering. The IPO is a full circle for Domus Holdings, Realogy’s owner,

Real estate, as is the case with every other service-sector profession, is an industry built upon customer satisfaction, and an agent’s success will almost entirely depend on how past clients perceive – and more importantly, endorse – the agent’s

There are numerous signs out there that housing is recovering, and the folks at Redfin have presented yet another one – the preponderance of multiple offers. Seventy-one percent of respondents in the brokerage’s Real-Time Home-Buyer Tracker reported that when

The average 30-year FRM last week shattered previous record lows by falling to just 3.67 percent, according to Freddie Mac’s latest Primary Mortgage Market Survey. Down from last week, when it averaged 3.75 percent the 30-year was 4.49 percent

The granddaddy of housing construction data, the U.S. Census Bureau’s “Characteristics of New Housing” report, just came out for 2011, and it features numerous stats on the single-family home market. Perhaps the most interesting data, though, involves financing, and

Compared to lawyers, politicians and used car salesmen, how ethical are real estate agents? According to a new poll out from Gallup, the answer to that question is actually quite