New realtor.com feature to test increased agent responsiveness, impact on leads A lack of responsiveness from agents has always been a chief complaint among buyers and sellers. In an effort to address customers’ complaints and provide brokerages with better lead

U.S. mortgage rates were increasing at steady clip in 2015 until global economic events intervened The economic turmoil in Greece and China could possibly benefit U.S. homebuyers. That cause and effect was the chief finding in Freddie Mac’s latest Primary Mortgage

Is strong market prediction too bold to make? Fannie Mae released their June National Housing Survey results with an overall conclusion that a strong market was shaping up for the summer. However, when looking at the specific year-over-year data, the results are more

Mortgage applications decreased 4.7 percent last week, according to the data from the latest Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) survey. The Market Composite Index, which measures mortgage loan application volume, dipped 4.7 percent. Similarly, the Refinance Index decreased 5 percent

What details in latest jobs report bear the most significance for housing? The nation’s unemployment rate fell from 5.5 to 5.3 percent in June, while the overall economy added 223,000 nonfarm payroll jobs, according to the Bureau of Labor

Over the last year, distressed home sales have become far less prominent in Texas’ housing market Distressed sales throughout Texas comprised just 4.4 percent of all home sales in May, a marked drop from the 7.2 percent market share of a year ago,

Residential construction spending may be up in 2015, but some areas performing better than others Residential construction spending was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $359.5 billion in May, according to the latest data from the U.S. Census

Recession technically over, but challenges remain for housing market Six years ago, the recession officially ended. However, 41 percent of Americans still think the housing crisis is happening, and a new study by the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University has

Home prices positive in latest Case-Shiller, but are there signs of a slow down? Home prices in the Texas continued to post strong gains in Standard & Poor’s latest Case-Shiller Home Price Indices, with prices in Dallas rising 1.1 percent from March

Construction is down in the market’s lower end, and economists say they know why The construction industry continues to make strides bringing more new homes to the market, a Census Bureau report on housing permits recently showed. But while

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau decided to again amend its proposal to extend the forthcoming TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosure rule compliance deadline, this time pushing the effective date from Oct. 1 to Oct. 3. “The bureau proposed Oct. 3 as

May was a solid month for pending home sales activity, but uncertainty remains for housing’s future Pending home sales continued their hot streak in May, rising by monthly and yearly measurements to their highest level in nine years, according to

Civil rights groups are celebrating the Supreme Court’s recent decision on disparate impact claims, but is it too early? The Supreme Court’s affirmation of an appeals decision endorsing the citation of disparate impact in housing cases – which means evidence

Progress has been made on negative equity front, but troubling trends persist In the Houston housing market, only 6.5 percent of mortgage holders remain underwater, but a majority of those holders will not reach positive equity for some time. That was the sobering

Mario Negron of RE/MAX Prestige – Houston New Home Team ranked sixth on the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals‘ (NAHREP) list of Top 250 Hispanic Agents in the U.S. The list, which ranked agents based on the

Supreme Court rules disparate impact claims will be covered under FHA Discriminatory intent is irrelevant in cases of disparate impact, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled today in a tight 5-4 decision, where Justice Anthony Kennedy proved the decider. In