National News

Real Estate in Brief: Zillow lawsuit dropped, home flipping on the rise and more

A class-action lawsuit that charged Zillow with deceptive business practices designed to mislead consumers has been dropped. A Federal district court has dismissed the lawsuit last week. The lawsuit claims that Zestimates, Zillow’s algorithm-based property estimate tool, are commonly inaccurate as

4 highlights from the Realtors Legislative Meetings & Trade Expo

The annual Realtors Legislative Meetings & Trade Expo took place last week in Washington D.C. and covered a variety of topics impacting the real estate industry. Couldn’t make it to D.C. for the event? We share some of the

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Survey shows homebuyers want more technology use from agents

A new owners.com survey found that homebuyers are looking for their real estate agents to use more tech-based tools. The survey sampled over 1,000 homeowners, which they define as “those who purchased a home within the last four years”

Homeowners expected to spend tax returns on larger homes

With the latest tax plan that is expected to give Americans a larger tax return, many plan to spend their tax cuts on larger houses and home renovations in 2018, according to a new report from Zillow. Zillow estimates

NAR: Home sales expected to increase in 2018 despite housing shortage

Home sales across America are expected to continue rising throughout 2018 thanks to the nation’s stronger economy. The National Association of Realtors’ Chief Economist Lawrence Yun predicted the increase in sales during his 2018 mid year forecast. According to

Homebuyers with lower credit scores pay nearly $21,000 more in mortgage costs

Determining how much they could spend on a home was the most frequently named financing concern among a third of all U.S. buyers during the home buying process. A major factor in what a homebuyer can afford is their

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Builders begin to refocus on entry-level homes

Low inventory is impacting home sales across the country and one of the categories that have been hardest hit are entry-level homes. However, according to the latest survey from Builder Online, builders are starting to hone in on starter

Real Estate in Brief: Expected home appraisals at best level in years, teachers in need of affordable housing and more

In the past year, appraisals are more likely to be in line with, or even higher than, owners estimate. Appraised values were just 0.33 percent lower than what homeowners expected, according to National Quicken Loans Home Price Perception Index.

Single women buying twice as many homes as single men, study says

While the overwhelming majority of homebuyers are married couples, it is women who make up the larger share of sales among single people, according to the National Association of Realtors. Single women are the second-most common homebuyer, accounting for

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Luxury homes prices up nearly 8 percent in the first quarter

Luxury home prices rise nearly 8 percent to average sales price of $1.8 million in the first quarter of 2018, according to a new report from Redfin. An analysis of over 1,000 cities by Redfin indicates prices of the top five

Home price increase in 2018 as inventory lags

Home prices are creeping up across the country as inventory continues to hover near all-time lows, according to the National Association of Realtors first quarter report. Total existing home sales declined slightly in the first quarter of 2018 versus

Amazon and Lennar partner to create Alexa-controlled smart homes

Amazon and Lennar announced its new partnership to provide Alexa-enabled smart homes in certain markets across the country. Homebuyers can get homes that come with features that can be controlled with Alexa including Wi-Fi, smart locks, doorbells, thermostats and

Growing homeownership rate helps in increasing household wealth among Hispanics

Household wealth is increasing among America’s Hispanic population, according to The Hispanic Wealth Project’s 2018 Annual Report. The Hispanic Wealth Project has been working to achieve their goal set in 2014 of tripling Hispanic household wealth by 2024. One

Majority of Americans still think now is a good time to buy

Most Americans think home prices in their area are going to rise, but the majority also still think that now is a good time to buy, according to the latest Gallup poll. Gallup’s annual Economy and Personal Finance poll

Recent college graduates are living at home more often

Today’s graduates are more likely to be living with their parents than graduates from the previous decade. According to Zillow’s analysis of 2016 Census data, 28 percent of recent graduates live with their parents — up from 19 percent

Agents using Google Maps on their websites could have to pay

Agents and brokers who are embedding Google Maps into their listings will now have to pay to do so. The Google Maps application programing interface (API) allows agents and brokers to embed maps into listings on their websites. This

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