National News
Agents are working hard to make 2015 a profitable year, but low inventories are keeping sales slow. January marked the start of a new year, but it was hardly the hit the ground running beginning the market was hoping
Whenever you see a report on America’s evaporating middle class, you should think about the implications for housing. Homeownership is a defining symbol of American middle class life; indeed, the quintessential image of a single-family detached house, complete with
Builder confidence is far above the rate of new construction; what gives? Here’s an interesting nuance to the housing recovery: the Housing Market Index, which tracks builder confidence, dropped a couple points from January to February, finishing at 55;
Pat Riley, president and chief operating officer of Allen Tate Companies, has been elected to a two-year term as chairman of the board of Leading Real Estate Companies of the World (LeadingRE), a global network of more than 500 market-leading
Why are mortgage rates still so low? Allow us to count the ways. Average rates for the 30-year FRM may have ticked up last week, but they remain at their lowest point since May 2013. What’s behind the low stature
It was the same old story in January, with multifamily construction leading the way. Another year, another setting for multifamily dominance in residential construction. That was the central lesson from the Census Bureau’s latest report, which found multifamily permits, starts
Zillow yesterday completed its acquisition of Trulia, shelling out $2.5 billion for its former rival and forming the “Zillow Group,” the parent company that will now house not only the Zillow and Trulia brands, but also StreetEasy and HotPads. Though nothing has
A new study from the Federal Reserve brings more evidence to the table on the damaging economic effects of high student debt burdens We’re written in the past about the effects of student loan debt on the housing market
Sure, the FAA finally ruled on drones, but that doesn’t necessarily mean the drone floodgates are now open. After considerable deliberation and anticipation, the Federal Aviation Administration finally unveiled its regulations for commercial drone usage on Sunday, which, in tandem
After a considerable waiting period, it looks like Zillow will officially acquire Trulia. It was way back in July 2014 when Zillow first announced its $2.9 billion acquisition of syndication rival Trulia, and now, after considerable anticipation, it seems
The last couple weeks, we’ve been analyzing exclusive numbers from the CoreLogic Housing Credit Index, a detailed look at mortgage availability. Our central question has been a simple one: is it any easier, nowadays, to attain a mortgage? And after
It’s been a rollercoaster ride following the nation’s mortgage markets, so we decided to take a more long-term view at some of the key stats at play – and how, with only one exception, things have improved by quite
Agents never publicly disclose their splits, but should that change? Howard Schultz, the famed CEO of Starbucks, recently proclaimed that “the currency of leadership is transparency,” and his comment snuggled up quite nicely with what is a new trend
Last year NAR outspent some of the most influential companies and groups in the U.S. Was it all for influence? In 2014, Koch Industries, capital generator for the infamously influential Koch brothers, shelled out nearly $14 million in lobbying
Minority groups have a harder time accessing mortgages in the U.S., including here in Atlanta. In the Atlanta metro area, 25.3 percent of African-Americans are denied in their applications for conventional mortgages, according to a new analysis from Zillow; that’s
Atlanta continued to set the world on fire with its rise in asking prices Asking prices in Atlanta began 2015 on a soaring note, according to the Trulia Price Monitor. Prices were up a whopping 16.2 percent year-over-year in January – good for
