National News

The inventory of unsold homes increased in April, while the median existing-home sales price rose, according to the National Association of REALTORS®.

“Builders are responding to higher mortgage rates and are chasing rising rents, with fewer homebuyers and more renters being forced to renew their leases.” — NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun

The release of the monthly survey from the National Association of Home Builders comes as the Biden Administration unveiled a housing-supply action plan that aims to boost the supply of affordable apartments and new homes.

Zillow 3D Home tours, which offer interactive, 360-degree views of listings, will now appear on Redfin automatically — with no additional steps required from agents.

Realogy Holdings Corp. is officially rebranding as Anywhere Real Estate Inc. According to a press release, the company expects to implement the rebrand by end of second quarter 2022.

Despite a slow start to the spring homebuying season, prospective buyers are showing some resiliency in the face of higher mortgage rates, as seen by two weeks in a row of increasing loan applications.

Though the number of active U.S. listings did shrink in April, it fell by the smallest amount — 12.2% — since December 2019, according to a new monthly report from Realtor.com. And the change has left experts feeling confident.

Seventy percent of the 185 metros surveyed by the National Association of REALTORS® saw double-digit price gains in the first quarter, compared to 66% in the preceding period.

Overall mortgage-application volume was at its lowest level since 2018, the Mortgage Bankers Association said.

Low inventory and rising interest rates have reduced prospective homebuyer purchasing power.

Rising interest rates and home prices have taken a toll on would-be homebuyers’ purchasing power, leading to increased inventory and another monthly slowdown in sales.

Single-family home starts declined compared to February, while new apartment construction was up, according to government statistics.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has released its first Equity Action Plan, with the goal of narrowing the racial homeownership gap.

Builder sentiment has taken a hit from an unexpectedly sharp increase in mortgage rates and continued disruptions in the supply chain, according to the National Association of Home Builders’ monthly survey.

Investor activity showed early signs of slowing during Q4 of 2021, down from the historic highs seen in the second and third quarter, CoreLogic’s latest analysis reveals.

Altogether, eight companies well known to members of the residential real estate community were included in the annual list.