NEW YORK — What was anticipated as a bounce-back year for the housing market in 2025 never materialized. Rate cuts from the Fed did not occur as early in the year as expected, policy uncertainty sidelined many buyers, and affordability constraints remained despite inventory in the new-home sector increasing. Given how the year transpired, […]
News & Media NEW YORK — First-time home buyers preparing to enter the housing market in 2026 are being encouraged to prioritize readiness over waiting for ideal conditions, as affordability pressures and limited inventory persist. Buyers who delay in hopes of lower mortgage rates may find that home prices and competition offset potential savings, […]
WASHINGTON – The One Big Beautiful Bill Act made some long-awaited permanent changes to the tax code. It also introduced short-term tax breaks that come with strict limits and phaseouts, and many of them are only available through 2028 or 2029. Here are four ways to get the most out of the OBBBA’s temporary […]
MIAMI – Shared homeownership isn’t new, but who’s doing it is. As prices surge, more first-time buyers are turning to friends to afford a home. According to the National Association of Realtors®, home prices have risen 56% since early 2020. At the same time, first-time buyers now make up just 21% of the market, […]
News & Media NEW YORK – As the real estate market stabilizes in 2026, success is increasingly tied to fundamentals rather than visibility or spend. Agents who entered the business within the past three to five years may be better positioned precisely because they are not anchored to habits formed during the low-rate, high-volume […]
News & Media By Amy Connolly TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Legislative tort reforms passed in 2022 and 2023 prevented Florida property and casualty insurance premiums from rising an average of 14.5% and spurred economic growth across the state, according to a new Perryman Group analysis. The February 2026 report, The Economic Benefits of Tort Reform […]
News & Media WASHINGTON – Existing-home sales decreased by 8.4% in January, according to the National Association of Realtors® Existing-Home Sales report. The report provides the real estate ecosystem — including agents, homebuyers and sellers — with data on the level of home sales, price, and inventory. Month-over-month and year-over-year sales fell in all […]
WASHINGTON — The average long-term U.S. mortgage rate is holding at just above 6% after reversing a modest uptick in recent weeks – just as the housing market closes in on the spring homebuying season. The benchmark 30-year fixed rate mortgage rate slipped to 6.09% from 6.11% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said […]
WASHINGTON — No matter what your finances look like today, it’s never too late to make positive changes to improve them. Boosting your financial knowledge and skills will make it easier to make more informed choices that help you create the financial future you envision. Do you want to learn more about how your […]
News & Media By Cathy Hobbs NEW YORK – When it comes to home selling, it’s easy to assume that investing in renovations will equal more value. Even so, many of the upgrades that homeowners invest in, often at a hefty investment, don’t help a home sell faster or for more money. Buyers prioritize […]
News & Media WASHINGTON – New digital platforms tend to get attention in real estate long before it’s clear whether they actually change how buyers and sellers make decisions. What matters isn’t audience size or growth, but whether a platform reshapes how people search for information, evaluate trust or decide who feels credible enough […]
CHICAGO — Wood cabinetry has officially edged out white as the most popular choice in kitchen renovations, according to Houzz’s 2026 Kitchen Trends Study, which surveyed more than 1,700 homeowners about their latest kitchen remodeling project. For the first time in recent years, wood has emerged as the top cabinet choice, selected by 29% […]
