News / Features

43-acre mixed-use district coming to Jersey Village

Development for a mixed-use commercial and residential development in Jersey Village has been announced by Houston-based architecture and development firm Collaborate. The 43-acre project will be called “The Village Center” and will not only house the area’s city hall,

New insight from Fed meeting could keep mortgage rates low

In a positive sign for homebuyers planning on taking out new mortgages, the Federal Reserve sent its clearest signals yet that it will hold off on interest rate increases for the foreseeable future and perhaps the rest of 2019.

Congress still trying to pass long-term flood insurance solution

The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) has been a subject of debate for years in Congress, gaining temporary funding multiple times without any permanent solutions. Recently, representatives across political lines have shown interest in finally reaching a long-term resolution,

Remote workers more likely to own than rent

For most Americans, the average commute is less than 90 minutes. However, extreme commuters exist on either end of this spectrum, with telecommuters (who work from home) experiencing no travel time and so-called “super commuters” traveling over 90 minutes

Real Estate in Brief: Lender sentiment, housing starts and more

Lender optimism jumps as rates drift lower The latest survey of mortgage industry sentiment from Fannie Mae found lenders markedly more optimistic about their business prospects at the start of 2019. While still negative overall, the results of Fannie

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Houston single-family home prices set new February record

The Houston housing market rebounded in February following January’s declining sales, according to a new report from the Houston Association of Realtors. Single-family home prices saw a record high for the month of February as the median sales price

Real Estate in Brief: Insurance bills, photo fraud and more

Experts warn of misleading listing photos Has photo retouching gone too far? Some brokers and buyers think so, according to a feature in The Wall Street Journal this week discussing the growing popularity of dead-simple photo editing tools used

Why technology (probably) can’t replace agents

Will technology one day replace the role of the real estate agent? In an era of rapidly evolving customer relationship management software, iBuyers and the constant specter of brokerage mergers and acquisitions—always, it seems, with tech bandied about as

Chase chief economist on managing client uncertainty

American homeowners have a vested interest in the U.S. economy, and by association, so do real estate agents. The size and scope of the housing market, itself just one piece of the world’s largest economy, makes this a difficult

How Freddie Mac is leading the way for women in real estate

Although most Americans alive today have never known a world where women are absent from the workforce, most are still well aware of the discrimination and injustice that continues to plague working women. Though gender norms continue to be

New 2019 housing forecasts reflect brighter outlook

Only three months ago, the consensus among economists studying the U.S. housing market was that 2019 would be, at best, unimpressive. Given prevailing trends at the time, it looked as though rising interest rates would continue driving up the

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This week in Houston real estate: New 55+ community, Texas bullet train and more

  The Woodlands gets new 55+ community Caldwell Companies announced plans for a 1,200-acre active-adult community north of The Woodlands. The community will have 3,000 homes specifically tailored to buyers 55 years old and up and will be named

Embrace the great outdoors at Grand Central Park

Luxury new construction and modern conveniences in natural surroundings

Big data solutions for housing’s most pressing problems

The U.S. Census Bureau is renewing its push to stimulate innovative technological developments through the use of its own data. The Opportunity Project (TOP), a collaborative effort between government agencies and private tech firms, continues to build upon initiatives

Pending home sales grow nationally, a welcome sign for spring

The first evidence that homebuyers are reacting to favorable market conditions came in the National Association of Realtors’ latest Pending Home Sales report.  According to NAR’s index of pending home sales activity, contract signings grew 4.6 percent in January

What’s ahead for FHFA nominee Mark Calabria?

On Tuesday, Feb. 26, the Senate Banking Committee voted to confirm Mark Calabria as the new head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency. Assuming he makes it through the full Senate vote, which has yet to be scheduled, Calabria

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