News / Features

39 Percent of Houston Agents Dealt With International Homebuyers in 2011

International buyers are making up an increasingly potent share of Houston’s real estate market, according to the 2012 International Real Estate Business Survey. Conducted by the Houston Association of Realtors and covered by the Houston Chronicle, the survey found that 39

Did the FHA’s Foreclosures Really Rise by 73 Percent?

Lender Processing Services (LPS) made quite a stir last week with its report that foreclosures on Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-guaranteed homes rose by 73 percent in April. Naturally, the FHA, feisty as ever, is not taking that claim mildly,

4 Things You MUST Know About the Supreme Court’s Recent Ruling on Transaction Fees

The Supreme Court’s rulings have a habit of disappearing in the daily news cycle, but its most recent ruling could have a transformative effect on the entire real estate landscap. The ruling for Freeman et. al. v. Quicken Loans,

3 Reasons the Luxe Life is Here

The Trump International Hotel & Tower in Chicago made a big splash last week when it listed one of the most expensive slices of real estate in the city’s history – an 89th-floor, 14,260 square-foot, $32-million penthouse. Trump Tower, though,

3 Reasons Houston Keeps Prospering

One does not have to be a rocket scientist at NASA to see that things are pretty good in Houston right now. Home sales in April were positive for the 11th straight month, reaching their highest level since August

5 Great Things Happening in the Construction Economy

Everything was sunny and fine for the U.S. construction industry in April, which continued its 2012 gains with strong showings for the month in the Census Bureau’s latest report. Altogether, construction spending rose 0.3 percent from March to April

What is Walmart’s Impact on Home Prices?

Walmart is many things to many people – discount chain, multinational corporation, grocery store, and, of course, arbiter of pollution, low-wage jobs and traffic. But a new study from a duo of economists has put a new, interesting perspective

159 Percent More Buyers Interested in Foreclosed Properties

A new survey by Realtor.com has found that prospective homebuyers are more interested in foreclosures than ever before – and in a major way. Since October 2009, homebuyer interest in foreclosures has risen by an incredible 159 percent, which

Do Mortgages Come in Bulk at Costco, Too?

Costco, the popular warehouse club chain, is a great place for food, office supplies, clothing and…mortgages? Yes indeed – Costco has partnered with First Choice Bank and 10 other lenders to offer home purchasing and refinancing products through its

6 Causes For Optimism On Pending Home Sales

New pending home sales data from the National Association of Realtors is reporting a 14.4 percent increase from April 2011. The data, which is gleaned from the Pending Home Sales Index, was down monthly by 5.5 percent after three

4 Things YOU Should Know About Copyrights on the MLS, with Ward Arendt, Chairman of the HAR MLS Advisory Group

The First Multiple Listing Service (FMLS), a 55-year-old MLS that serves more than 30,000 agents throughout Georgia, was in the news last week when Lane Bailey, a Realtor in the state, discovered that when uploading photos to FMLS, agents

The 5 Most Important Details of CoreLogic’s Lawsuit Against Redfin

CoreLogic filed a patent-infringement lawsuit against Redfin late last week, alleging that a new home price tool the online brokerage released in March violates an existing patent. A home price estimator, Redfin’s Home Price Tool was designed to give prospective

Home Prices Stabilizing in Latest Case-Shiller

Home values nationwide have began to stabilize in S&P’s latest Case-Shiller Home Price Indices, and the markets in Texas are leading the charge to recovery. From February to March, national prices were unchanged, and though S&P does not track

App Takes Real Estate Selling To New Dimension

Agents looking to take their selling skills to another dimension will have one more tool in their arsenal. Miami-based software development company Evolution Ventures has recently launched their Sage iPad and web-based application for Realtors in the Chicago

8 Reasons to Jump for Joy on Housing

It’s no mystery that housing has been on a bumpy path since 2007, but the past month, a wide range of data has come out all but endorsing a new housing recovery. From home sales, to interest rates, to

The 4 Most Prominent Arguments Against Syndication

Internet syndication has changed the real estate industry as we know it, but that doesn’t mean that all brokerages want to use it. Edina Realty, the Twin Cities-based brokerage that famously pulled its listings from Trulia, was in the

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