The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage barely budged this week, remaining low at a 3.75% average, Freddie Mac reports.“Mortgage rates have essentially stabilized over the last two months, which reflects the recovery and improvement in the economy from the malaise earlier in the year,” says Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. “Going forward, the combination of low mortgage rates, tight labor market, and high consumer confidence should set
More homes are being outfitted with smart-home technology—devices that enable remote control and monitoring of household systems. A new analysis from Harvard University’s Remodeling Futures Program shows high demand for such devices and predicts the trend to only get bigger over the coming years, despite some recent security concerns and device breaches.But more than half of consumers say they find the internet of things “creepy,” an
College graduates are searching for a place to live, whether it’s a home of their own, a place to rent, or moving back with their parents. But $7,481 is their magic number—that’s what they see they need, on average, to move out of their parents’ house, according to a new survey from Apartment Guide.Forty-six percent of Generation Z college students say they plan to rent or buy a home after graduation. However, 63% don’t know their curre
Kitchen islands have become the focal point in many homes, and there are plenty of reasons why real estate pros are spotlighting them in their listings.Kitchens have transformed into multifunctional spaces in recent years, and the kitchen island is turning it into a social gem. “The island gives families with children the opportunity to combine cooking, homework and socializing, the latter being especially valuable,” Lene Halse Hornemann, des
Big metro cities like San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles are notably absent from realtor.com®’s latest list of the top-performing housing markets in the country. Instead, more suburban areas—like Grand Rapids, Mich., and Omaha, Neb.--are topping the list.Housing affordability has been fueling demand in smaller, more suburban housing markets, realtor.com®’s 2019 hottest ZIP codes report notes. The average home price of $272,000 in th
The home may look great, but if you don’t get this one thing right, buyers won’t be buying, real estate pros say. And that all centers around the smell—the sense that too many home sellers neglect to pay attention to.Some home sellers may be noseblind to their home’s scent, and they need the real estate professional to offer a fresh unbiased opinion.“One of the easiest ways to evoke pleasant feelings about a space is to enhance the
Some of the most popular renovations, such as a kitchen remodel or landscape upgrade, are likely to cost your sellers more than they’ll get back at resale. And a major mistake sellers make when undertaking home improvement is tailoring the project to their own personal tastes without considering potential resale value, Alex Lavrenov, a broker with Warburg Realty in New York, told Forbes.com. Some costly renovations may even hurt your sellers’
Twelve percent of Americans say they felt pressured to spend more than they were comfortable with on a home in order to appear successful in the eyes of others, according to a new Bankrate.com survey of more than 2,700 adults.Parents with children under the age 18 (at 21%) were most likely to have felt pressured to overspend on a house, according to the survey. Buyers between the ages of 23 and 38 were twice as likely as those older than 38 to sp
You can move mansions.Some homeowners are taking their houses with them when they relocate. More than 8,000 structures are moved each year, Tammie DeVooght Blaney, executive director of the International Association of Structural Movers, told The Wall Street Journal. Most of the structures are moved due to environmental hazards and historic preservation, and some are high-end single-family homes—at 4,000 square feet or more.Most homes can
Lakefront homes may offer buyers a chance to get a waterfront property at a more affordable price than a vacation home on the ocean. “Lake towns often offer people an affordable destination with water sports, amenities, natural beauty, and an array of often top-quality dining options,” says Clare Trapasso, senior news editor at realtor.com®. “Some of these lake towns also double as ski resorts in the winter. Those who enjoy cold-weather sp
This website includes images sourced from third party websites including Adobe, Getty Images, and as otherwise noted.
