National News

How Does a New Home’s Size Impact its Features?

We all wonder if size truly matters, but in the case of newly built single-family homes, the answer is clear. What percentage of newly built homes have an entry foyer? What if the home is less than 2,000 square

NAR: Existing-Home Sales Dip Slightly in September

Existing-home sales declined a bit from August to September, though housing inventory continued to show promising signs. After hitting their highest level in nearly four years, existing-home sales came back down to earth in September, declining 1.9 percent to

New Home Data Coming to the MLS

Builders Digital Experience, Inc. (BDX), a joint venture between Move, Inc. and Builder Homesite, Inc., announced this month a unique partnership with nine multiple listing services – including Chicagoland’s Midwest Real Estate Data (MRED) – to provide new home

NAHB: Builder Confidence Wanes Somewhat in September

Builder confidence had been on a tear recently, but new data from the NAHB suggests a cooling off period. Builder confidence for the newly built, single-family home market stumbled a bit in October, with the National Association of Home

How is Space Distributed in New Homes in 2013?

The components of new homes in 2013 are pretty consistent, but how is space distributed across those various components? It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to deduce the components of a typical newly built single-family home. From the family

So, About that Government Default – Should We Be Afraid?

We’re now two days away from a government default, an event that would spell nothing but trouble for the nation’s housing market. We’re now drawing uncomfortably close to a government default, and though we have written on a couple

Are Zombies & Vampires a Problem in Our Housing Market?

What are Vampire REOs and Zombie Foreclosures? And what problems do they pose for the housing market? Last week, we reported on the latest National Foreclosure Report from CoreLogic, and the news was uniformly good: foreclosure inventory was down a

How Affordable Will Housing Be When Rates Hit 7 Percent?

Housing affordability has been on the decline this year, but by how much? And what will affordability look like when rates increase? It’s been an interesting year in the world of housing affordability. Record low mortgage rates and competitively

5 Interesting Details about Janet Yellen, Obama’s Pick to Head the Fed

Janet Yellen, President Obama’s choice to head the Federal Reserve, brings a unique combination of the old and the new to the position. President Obama yesterday announced Janet Yellen as his choice to head the Federal Reserve and take

CoreLogic: Foreclosure Inventory Drops 33% in August

The nation’s foreclosure markets have been showing considerable improvement in 2013, but did that trend continue in August? The good news continued for the nation’s foreclosure markets, according to CoreLogic’s latest National Foreclosure Report, with foreclosure inventory, completed foreclosures

Consumer Caution Grows in Latest National Housing Survey

Consumer sentiment on the housing market has gone nowhere but up in the last few months, but does the latest survey from Fannie Mae suggest a slowdown? Baby, we had a great run. Though consumer confidence on the housing

Is the Mortgage Industry Obsolete?

Globalization and demographic trends are likely to drive even more dramatic changes to the industry in the coming years, according to one controversial industry expert. And she thinks servicing executives should be the ones leading the charge to transform

4 Key Concepts on the Government Shutdown and Housing

It’s been several days now of the government shutdown, and it’s becoming more clear how it could potentially impact the housing market. The government shutdown went into effect at midnight on Oct. 1, and ever since then, there has

How Much Do Homes Cost in Top Tier School Districts?

Strong school districts are often a top selling point for certain neighborhoods, but how do they translate to the median price of the area? It’s gotta be among the most common of questions that real estate agents receive –

CoreLogic: Home Prices Slow in August, Still Up 12.4% YOY

Though monthly home price growth slowed in August, it still posted strong year-over-year returns, according to CoreLogic. Well, the great home-price honeymoon may be drawing to a close. According to the latest Home Price Index from CoreLogic, home prices

RE/MAX IPO Exceeds Expectations, Raises $220 Million

RE/MAX’s IPO exceeded expectations on Wednesday, raising more than $220 million in funding. RE/MAX became the latest real estate business to expand to the stock market with its IPO on Wednesday – and like those earlier companies, its IPO

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