News / Features
Existing-home sales finally grew in May after two months of downbeat reports, according to the latest monthly snapshot of U.S. housing activity from the National Association of Realtors. Closed sales of previously-owned homes increased by 2.5 percent over April’s
Investors claim growing share of US home sales Despite still-growing prices that have exceeded their pre-recession peaks in some markets, more single-family homes around the U.S. are being purchased by investors rather than owner-occupants. According to a report from
Optimism struck in the second quarter of 2019 with 73 percent of Americans saying they believe now is a good time to sell a home, an increase from 65 percent in the first quarter based on a consumer survey
The Federal Reserve announced June 19 that it would not make changes to targets for its key interest rate, the federal funds rate, which influences what banks charge for consumer loans including mortgages. However, in line with some projections,
Numbers released June 18 by the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development show that housing starts fell during the month of May, although building permit issues increased. Privately-owned housing starts dropped by 0.9
Newly appointed mortgage finance regulator Mark Calabria has made no secret of his goal to overhaul Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, two government-controlled corporations with enormous sway over the U.S. mortgage market. However, it remains unclear exactly what the
Back when chatbots first gained traction in 2016, most people thought they’d never engage with a virtual assistant to get the information they needed, let alone try to use one in their own business. But now it’s 2019 and
A growing number of baby boomers, those born between 1948 and 1962, are attracted to the sunshine and sandy beaches that coastal Miami has to offer. A high number of baby boomers moved to five Miami ZIP codes between
The trend toward lower mortgage rates doesn’t appear to be a short-lived phenomenon, and has already boosted loan application activity to historically high levels. As a result, lending industry executives are responding with their most optimistic outlook on the
In every decision they make, parents tend to make their children their top priority. And according to new research from Zillow, the same goes for the considerations they make when shopping for a new home More than the life
Miami Beach mulls new rules on rentals Coach houses, accessory dwelling units, or “granny flats” — whatever you want to call them, laws in Miami Beach have made it difficult for homeowners who have them to earn income by
HUD confirms ‘Dreamers’ are ineligible for FHA loans The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development confirmed for the first time that undocumented immigrants given temporary residence under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals policy (known as Dreamers) are
A new report by home remodeling website Fixr lists the top 20 metropolitan areas in the country for the number of construction permits filed in 2018. The list includes many “usual suspects” like New York, Los Angeles and Chicago
Two recent measures of Americans’ confidence in the national housing market improved in the last month, showing that more homeowners as well as consumers are generally feeling more optimistic about this key segment of the U.S. economy. One of
The practice of home flipping in the U.S. declining in strict numbers, even as it grows as a share of all home sales, according to a new report on the subject by ATTOM Data Solutions. The report looked at
The housing market is a major driver of the U.S. economy, but its contribution is different on a state-by-state basis. According to a recent report from the National Association of Realtors, Florida’s real estate industry contributed $227.3 billion to
