News / Features

What's in a Word? "Agents" Absent on Job Sites

Job-hunting sites such as Monster, Career Builder and especially Simply Hired have made job searches easier than ever, but in the case of real estate, a bit more legwork may be necessary. Chicago Agent did a sweep of the real

Did the FHA's Foreclosures Really Rise by 73 Percent?

Lender Processing Services (LPS) made quite a stir last week with its report that foreclosures on Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-guaranteed homes rose by 73 percent in April. Naturally, the FHA, feisty as ever, is not taking that claim mildly,

4 Things You MUST Know About the Supreme Court's Recent Ruling on Transaction Fees

The Supreme Court’s rulings have a habit of disappearing in the daily news cycle, but its most recent ruling could have a transformative effect on the entire real estate landscap. The ruling for Freeman et. al. v. Quicken Loans,

U.S. Home Prices Rise Modestly in the First Quarter

By Tara Steele According to the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s (FHFA) seasonally adjusted purchase-only house price index (HPI), home prices rose modestly in the first quarter of 2012, up 0.6 percent from the fourth quarter, and up 0.5 percent

CoreLogic Sues Redfin Over Home Price Tool

By AGBeat Recently, Redfin launched a new tool to educate homeowners on the pricing process, but the company has now been sued by CoreLogic for violating its automated valuation model patent filed 20 years ago. Launched just over two

Eight Reasons Housing is Recovering

By Peter Ricci It’s no mystery that housing has been on a bumpy path since 2007, but the past month, a wide range of data has come out all but endorsing a new housing recovery. From home sales, to

5 Great Things Happening in the Construction Economy

Everything was sunny and fine for the U.S. construction industry in April, which continued its 2012 gains with strong showings for the month in the Census Bureau’s latest report. Altogether, construction spending rose 0.3 percent from March to April

What is Walmart's Impact on Home Prices?

Walmart is many things to many people – discount chain, multinational corporation, grocery store, and, of course, arbiter of pollution, low-wage jobs and traffic. But a new study from a duo of economists has put a new, interesting perspective

159 Percent More Buyers Interested in Foreclosed Properties

A new survey by Realtor.com has found that prospective homebuyers are more interested in foreclosures than ever before – and in a major way. Since October 2009, homebuyer interest in foreclosures has risen by an incredible 159 percent, which

Do Mortgages Come in Bulk at Costco, Too?

Costco, the popular warehouse club chain, is a great place for food, office supplies, clothing and…mortgages? Yes indeed – Costco has partnered with First Choice Bank and 10 other lenders to offer home purchasing and refinancing products through its

6 Causes For Optimism On Pending Home Sales

New pending home sales data from the National Association of Realtors is reporting a 14.4 percent increase from April 2011. The data, which is gleaned from the Pending Home Sales Index, was down monthly by 5.5 percent after three

The 5 Most Important Details of CoreLogic's Lawsuit Against Redfin

CoreLogic filed a patent-infringement lawsuit against Redfin late last week, alleging that a new home price tool the online brokerage released in March violates an existing patent. A home price estimator, Redfin’s Home Price Tool was designed to give prospective

8 Reasons to Jump for Joy on Housing

It’s no mystery that housing has been on a bumpy path since 2007, but the past month, a wide range of data has come out all but endorsing a new housing recovery. From home sales, to interest rates, to

The 4 Most Prominent Arguments Against Syndication, with Comments from Michael Parent, MORe President-Elect

Internet syndication has changed the real estate industry as we know it, but that doesn’t mean that all brokerages want to use it. Edina Realty, the Twin Cities-based brokerage that famously pulled its listings from Trulia, was in the

Five Reasons the Government's Housing Starts Data is Flawed

Housing starts are among the most influential collections of data in the world of real estate, but a Washington Post blog has laid bare some troubling flaws with the data’s collection. Here are the five most notable inconsistencies with the

10 Things You Didn't Know About NAR's $1.45 Million Purchase

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) announced earlier this week its purchase of 437 N Rush, a two-story building that borders the west side of the association’s Chicago headquarters off Michigan Avenue. NAR will now own the entire block

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