Marketing through social media platforms — including Facebook — is constantly on the rise, and effectively impacting businesses of all kinds, including real estate.

Mortgage applications experienced a 4 percent increase last week (April 29), according to HousingWire.

The National Association of Realtors recently proposed a membership due increase of up to 50 percent, potentially increasing 2012 membership dues from the current $80, to $120, according to AgentGenius, in an effort to reshape campaign financing.

Is the National Association of Realtors increasing its membership? Across the U.S., various cities have experienced an increase in members.

According to the Institute for Luxury Home Marketing’s Luxury Housing Report, early numbers from the spring home buying season suggest that demand for luxury homes is warming up.

Housing is cheaper than at any point in the last 35 years, but mortgages are harder to get than at any point in the last 15 years, according to new research from Zillow.com, as reported by the Wall Street Journal.

According to Fannie Mae, the serious delinquency rate decreased to 4.44 percent in February from 4.45 percent in January. This is a decrease from a high of 5.59 percent in February 2010. Freddie reported the delinquency rate decreased to 3.63 percent in March from 3.82 percent in February. This is down from 4.13% in March 2010.

According to a report released Tuesday by the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies, a large number of renters are allocating more than half their income to housing.

According to a report released this morning by the National Association of Realtors, pending home sales increased 5.1 percent in March.

Beginning on Oct. 1, the government will dial back on the size of mortgages it guarantees in high-cost areas like San Francisco, New York and Washington. After that deadline, the maximum loan amount that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will back is scheduled to drop from $729,750 to $625,500.