More buyers moved to lock in rates last week, as mortgage costs dipped to their lowest average of the year. Total mortgage application activity—which includes loans for homebuying and refinancing—increased 1.5 percent last week on a seasonally adjusted basis, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported Wednesday. Purchase applications made up most of that increase, rising 5 percent week-over-week and now sitting 3 percent higher than the same
Marketing homeownership to renters? Your job may be getting tougher. A new survey from Freddie Mac finds more renters are optimistic about their financial situations, but they’re less likely to move even if their rents increase.“It would appear from our new survey that renters today feel better about their finances, like where they are living, and view renting favorably,” says David Brickman, executive vice president of Freddie Mac Multifam
How fast can you pick out signs of deferred maintenance in a listing? Realtor.com® recently spotlighted several red flags to watch for at an open house.Intense scents.The stronger the air freshener, the more likely the seller is trying to mask an offensive odor, warns Denise Supplee, a real estate professional with Long and Foster Real Estate in Doylestown, Pa. “When there’s too much going on in the scent department—plug-ins, wax warmers,
With low inventories across the U.S., now is a great time to sell. You may have clients interested in putting a rental property on the market that’s currently occupied by tenants. Desare Kohn-Laski, broker-owner of Skye Louis Realty in Coconut Creek, Fla., offers these three tips to successfully navigate the transaction.1. Understand the tenants’ rights.Tenants’ rights vary from state-to-state, but overall, if the rent has been paid on time
Vacation sales in 2016 posted a nearly 22 percent year-over-year drop and plunged to the lowest level since 2013, as buyers were greeted with fewer and pricier choices, according to the National Association of REALTORS®’ 2017 Vacation and Investment Home Survey, which covers existing and new-home transactions in 2016. Sales to investors fared much better.Vacation sales have fallen 36 percent from their recent peak set in 2014 (1.13 million in
The construction and ongoing operations of new commercial real estate—encompassing office, industrial, warehouse, and the retail sectors—supported a whopping 6.25 million American jobs and contributed $861 billion to the U.S. GDP in 2016. That's according to a new study, “Economic Impacts of Commercial Real Estate,” published by the NAIOP Research Foundation. Construction within the commercial sector continues to grow, with construction
Your website URL is key to your brand identity. A recent article by Forbes suggests you should ask yourself some of these questions to make sure you’re using your web address in a smart way.Can others pronounce it? “Even though users aren’t likely to be saying your domain name out loud, pronounce-ability is still important,” writes Forbes writer Denis Pinsky. “This is because of something called fluency: The ease with which our brains c
The average tax refund was $2,860 for the majority of Americans last year. According to a survey by GO Banking Rates, 41 percent of Americans plan to save their tax returns. That savings could help put them on the path to homeownership.Six percent of 18- to 34-year-olds say they plan to use their tax refund to purchase a car, home, etc., compared to 9 percent in the 35- to 44-year-old age group.“With higher incomes and a tax refund of approxima
Affordability issues may be keeping some first-time buyers on the sidelines—the percentage of homes purchased by this group has fallen to 32 percent, which is 8 percentage points below the historical norm, according to the National Association of REALTORS®—but in some cities, homeownership is more accessible to millennials.In its third annual study, financial website SmartAsset.com released its findings for 2017's best cities for first-time
Online marketing campaigns can be effective for prospecting, but if you find your ads are generating little response, revisit your strategy to make sure you're focusing on the results you want. Here are a few reasons why business professionals' online marketing may seem ineffective, according to Forbes columnist Brad Shorr. You place emphasis on the wrong metrics. Shorr notes that search rankings and traffic volume may not be the most meaningful
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