News / Features
The number of Americans who feel confident enough to buy or sell fell significantly in December 2017, undoing the previous month’s increase in confidence. According to Fannie Mae’s monthly Home Purchase Sentiment Index, which surveys 1,000 consumers about a
Credit scores among millennial homebuyers declined slightly from November 2016 to November 2017, according to Ellie Mae’s most recent Millennial Tracker report. The decrease in average credit scores of closed loans to millennials was most apparent for FHA and VA loans.
The Realtors Confidence Index from the National Association of Realtors (NAR) shows that Realtors are confident about what’s to come in the first half of 2018. On a scale of 1 to 100, the report measures NAR members’ housing
Mortgage lenders who were concerned about increased regulation and compliance in 2018 with the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act no longer need to worry. Under the new rules announced in 2015, lenders would have needed to provide significantly more information
Will Holder, president of Houston-based Trendmaker Homes, announced that he will retire on March 31; senior vice president Joe Mandola will take over. Along with running Trendmaker Homes since 2006, Holder has served as a past president of the Greater
While the number of renters now outpaces homeowners — with about one-third of the country’s population living in rentals — 2017 saw the first year of a slight decline in renting households since 2004, according to a recent report from
Home prices are up both year-over-year and month-over-month, according to CoreLogic’s Home Price Index (HPI) and HPI Forecast for November 2017. From November 2016 to November 2017, U.S. home prices increased 7 percent year over year. Month-over-month, home prices
Texas edges closer to California as the most populous state as the Lone Star state saw the largest population growth last year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s national and state population estimates of 2017. Between July 2016 and
The Federal Housing Finance Agency will be making changes as outlined in its 2018 Scorecard, which was released late last month. The scorecard highlights specific conservatorship priorities for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Common Securitization Solutions (CSS). The three main
While millennials are seen as the driving force behind the new trend in walkable communities, older generations also prefer to live in neighborhoods where they can easily get around on foot. According to the 2017 National Community and Transportation
The Houston housing market went through a number of changes throughout 2017. Largely because of the decline in home inventory due to Hurricane Harvey, competition for homes has grown over the past few months. As the president of Trendmaker
On Dec. 27, Guaranteed Rate announced a new jumbo loan program that does not require mortgage insurance and accepts as little as a 10 percent down payment option for loans up to $3 million. The program, GR Flex Power, includes
Pending home sales saw small gains in November while existing home sales and price growth are expected to slow heading into 2018, according to the National Association of Realtors. The Pending Home Sales Index rose from 109.3 in October
Amid low inventory and soaring sales, home prices around the country continued to increase in October, according to the latest S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Indices. Prices were up 6.2 percent over last October and up from 6.1 percent in September.
A driving factor for many homebuyers is choosing a home is a high-ranking school district in order to give their children the best opportunities possible. Children at Risk, a Texas nonprofit, recently assessed and ranked all public elementary schools
The new year is just around the corner, and if you’ve resolved to make your living space come alive with color and unique accents alike, a new forecast can help you choose your new decor. Zillow recently released its Home
