Hurricane Michael gained strength early Wednesday to a powerful Category 4 storm that is threatening to become the strongest storm ever to strike the Florida Panhandle. The storm is expected to make landfall Wednesday afternoon, bringing destructive winds and flooding rain throughout the day.If the storm continues its intensity and makes landfall as a Category 4, CoreLogic, a real estate data firm, predicts that about 84,200 homes in the Florid
Stay on top of trends and opportunities to be valuable and trustedThe times they are a-changin’. It was true for Bob Dylan in 1964 and it’s true for the real estate industry in, well, it’s always true.If you commit to a career as a professional real estate agent, it is vitally important to stay apprised of the market and industry changes. Your continuing education cannot simply be the classes you are required to take to maintain your licens
Many buyers may be potentially leaving money on the table by failing to contact more than one lender when shopping for a mortgage. Two-thirds—or 65 percent—of 1,000 buyers recently surveyed said they didn’t shop around for a mortgage, despite it being the biggest purchase they’ll ever make.The study, conducted by PenFed Credit Union, also found a lot of confusion surrounding mortgages. For example, 44 percent of home shoppers believe the
Federal authorities have been investigating whether foreign buyers are using shell companies to buy luxury real estate in the U.S. to launder money. Lawmakers, however, are calling on the government to do more to determine the prevalence of such scams and find more ways to curtail it.Sens. Chris Van Hollen, D-Maryland, and Sheldon Whitehouse, D-Rhode Island, are calling on the Government Accountability Office to investigate the occurrence. The se
Some second home markets not only offer relaxing getaways, but could also prove to be a wise investment. Realtor.com® researchers recently ranked the most lucrative second-home markets, where sellers stand to cash out with some of the largest profits.Realtor.com® analyzed the 500 largest metro areas where second homes comprise at least 12 percent of the properties. They focused on the homes sold over the past 12 months and then compared the mos
Aspiring home buyers may be getting so desperate to qualify for a mortgage that they may be tempted to lie about how much they earn on their mortgage application.The problem is getting worse, reports show. Mortgage fraud has climbed more than 12 percent in the past year, according to CoreLogic. A recent report from the real estate data firm showed that one of every 109 mortgage applications was believed to contain fraud. The largest jump in mortg
In many areas of the country, rents just keep increasing. Some renters may pay hundreds of dollars in higher rent over the next year, according to a new report from RentCafe. For example, Chicago renters could pay $948 more for their rent in the upcoming year, which is half a month’s worth of rent now, the study warns.RentCafe looked at actual rents charged in the 252 largest U.S. cities and where rents are expected to rise. Cumulated price in
Housing costs have soared higher than what teachers can comfortably afford on their salary alone in San Jose, Calif. So California’s San Jose Unified School District identified nine district-owned properties that it wants to transform into affordable housing units for teachers and other school staff. But their plan is drawing criticism from parents and neighborhood residents, the Mercury News reports.The plan calls for closing several of the di
A new program being piloted in west Denver sets out to help low-income homeowners build accessory dwelling units, or “granny flats,” onto their homes to then rent out and earn extra money as landlords. The program hopes to add more affordable units will help to address the area’s housing shortage.Mortgage financing giant Fannie Mae is funding the program, selecting it as one of three “innovative ideas” submitted by city officials this y
Borrowers saw a slight cool down in mortgage rates this week following last week’s seven-year high. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage dipped for the first time after five consecutive weeks of increases, averaging 4.71 percent.But the higher rates may be deterring some would-be home buyers. “The strength in the economy has failed to translate to gains in the housing market as higher mortgage rates have contributed to the decrease in home purchas
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