Tue.Oct 01, 2024

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Katie Johnson set to resign as NAR’s chief legal officer

Housing Wire

Katie Johnson is stepping down from her role as chief legal officer for the National Association of Realtors. CEO Nykia Wright informed NAR members of the news in an email sent Tuesday and obtained by HousingWire. Johnson, who has spent 17 years at the trade association, has also been serving as NAR’s chief membership experience officer. Her last day will be Oct. 4.

Legal 458
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Are U.S. Homes Ready for Extreme Weather?

Appraisal Buzz

With Hurricane Helene, the eighth named storm of the season, having made landfall as a Category 4 hurricane in Florida’s Big Bend region last Friday , cleanup from this devastating storm is underway, as people piece their lives back together after Mother Nature wreaked havoc throughout the Southeastern U.S. The death toll currently stands at 140-plus from Hurricane Helene, and CoreLogic announced initial residential and commercial storm surge and wind loss estimates for Hurricane Helene for insu

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Matterport introduces AI tools for property photos and descriptions

Housing Wire

Have you ever taken a great photo only to realize later that there’s a random person in the background, an object that doesn’t belong or something you simply don’t want in it? Real estate agents now have a new tool to remove these distraction from home staging photos — and no, it’s not Apple Intelligence. Matterport , a technology company that creates 3D models of buildings, has rolled out a tool called “defurnish,” which is an AI-powered function that allows agents to remove items i

Tools 423
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Top Targets for Real Estate Investors

Appraisal Buzz

Realtor.com has found that , amid rising home prices and mortgage rates, real estate investors are still finding hidden gems in affordable metros across the country, with Dayton, Ohio, standing out as the top destination for property investment in 2024. “For buyers interested in investing in rental properties or other real estate, it’s key to know which areas are both affordable and in high demand to be able to capitalize on any investment opportunities, especially with today’s higher prices and

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80% of older adults can’t afford to age in place

Housing Wire

As many as 80% of the 60-and-older population are unable to afford either long-term care or basic necessities like food, reflecting the serious financial challenges faced by older Americans despite their overwhelming preferences for aging in place. This is according to reporting by Phoenix-based National Public Radio (NPR) affiliate KJZZ , based on data from the National Council on Aging (NCOA) and researchers at the University of Massachusetts at Boston.

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Trend Shifts Impacting Apartment Rental Landscape 

Appraisal Buzz

According to recent Redfin data , more than half (54%) of newly built apartments completed in Q1 were rented out within three months, rebounding from a four-year low of 47% a quarter earlier. That is still down from 58% a year ago and the second-lowest seasonally adjusted share to be reported in a quarter since mid-2020. The improvement over the preceding quarter—which recorded the weakest absorption rate since the beginning of 2020—might indicate that property owners are drawing in tenants wit

Tenants 370

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Forecast: Commercial/Multifamily Borrowing and Lending to Increase

Appraisal Buzz

Total borrowing and lending for commercial and multifamily mortgages is expected to finish at $539 billion by the end of 2024, according to an updated baseline forecast by the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). This gives 2024 a 26% year-over-year increase from 2023’s total of $429 billion. Multifamily lending accounts for the largest chunk of that total, with an expected year-end total of $297 billion, a 21% increase from 2023’s estimated $246 billion.

Lending 369
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Opt-in MLSs, brokerages seek preliminary approval of commission suit settlements

Housing Wire

The 13 brokerages and 15 non-Realtor-owned MLSs that have settled the commission lawsuits through the opt-in mechanisms in the National Association of Realtors’ (NAR) settlement agreement are seeking preliminary approval of their deals. In an unopposed motion filed on Monday, the plaintiffs in the Sitzer/Burnett suit asked the court for preliminary approval of these settlements and to allow for the permissive joinder of the entities that opted in.

Brokerage 403
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Katie Johnson steps down as NAR’s chief legal officer

Real Estate News

Johnson oversaw historic — and very public — legal cases for the organization, including the buyer agent commission lawsuits and sexual harassment litigation.

Legal 277
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Rocket closes subservicing deal with REIT Annaly

Housing Wire

Rocket Mortgage has struck a deal to handle the servicing and recapturing activities for a portion of the mortgage servicing rights (MSRs) of real estate investment trust Annaly Capital Management , the companies announced on Tuesday. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Annaly has $75 billion in assets invested across its agency mortgage-backed securities (MBS), residential credit and MSR strategies.

Investing 402
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State Insurance Reforms Aim to Alleviate Market Challenges

Appraisal Buzz

This piece originally appeared in the September 2024 edition of MortgagePoint magazine, online now. Last year, National General Lender Services published an article highlighting that secondary perils, such as severe convective storms, wildfires, and river floods, are significantly impacting the insurance industry. The trend continues into this year, as the United States recorded 13 separate billion-dollar insured thunderstorm outbreaks in the first half of 2024, eight of which topped $2 billi

Insurance 221
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REcore offers up MLS Buyer Registry compliance tool

Housing Wire

REcore , a software-as-a-service and data licensing solutions provider for multiple listing services (MLSs), has announced the launch of its new MLS Buyer Registry tool. According to the announcement, the product is designed to address potential issues regarding buyer and agent compliance with the newly mandated buyer agency agreements. REcore said that the tool will help MLSs to ensure their subscribers are complying with the business practice changes outlined in the National Association of Rea

Tools 395
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Five Star Institute Partners With Naylor to Drive Industry Partnerships

Appraisal Buzz

The Five Star Institute and Naylor Association Solutions have announced a new partnership, which will enable associations to provide members with access to meaningful content and foster deeper member engagement. The Five Star Institute is a national trade association that supports the residential mortgage and real estate markets within the U.S. Naylor’s primary responsibility will be facilitating advertising partnerships between companies looking to get exposure from important mortgage industry

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Proactive quality control for lenders: How to navigate market shifts, regulatory changes and improve loan quality

Housing Wire

With interest rates trending downward and refinances picking up, the industry is preparing for an upswing. This shift is welcomed good news given the tough origination market over the last two years. However, the most recent ACES Mortgage QC Industry Trends Report found critical defect rates jumped up in the first quarter (Q1) of this year. Not only does this break a five-quarter-long downward trend, but this uptick in defects happened at a time when mortgage originations were at their lowest le

Marketing 395
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CoreLogic: Home Price Growth Muted in August

Appraisal Buzz

U.S. home prices increased 1.0% in August compared with July and were up 3.9% compared with August 2023, according to CoreLogic’s home price index report. The year-over-year gain of 3.9% was the lowest rate of home price appreciation recorded since last July. “While mortgage rates have dropped in recent weeks, August home sales were slowed by still-high rates, which lowered affordability,” explains Selma Hepp, chief economist for CoreLogic, in a statement.

Mortgage 195
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IMB Summit: FHFA’s Anne Marie Pippin on next areas of focus in tech

Housing Wire

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) is planning to examine innovations in the multifamily housing space following its TechSprint event in late July, which focused on innovative use cases in housing for generative artificial intelligence (gen AI). “There’s a lot of innovation taking place in the multifamily space. There’s at least a desire for more innovation in that space,” said Anne Marie Pippin , deputy director of the FHFA’s Division of Conservatorship Oversight and R

Tools 393
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Snapdocs Survey Shows How Technology Reduces Borrower Frustration

Appraisal Buzz

Sixty percent of homebuyers experience frustration during the mortgage process, a survey recently conducted for Snapdocs shows. The survey of more than 2,000 U.S. homebuyers reveals the mortgage process was confusing and inaccurate, inconvenient, or more costly than expected—with the majority of issues occurring during the closing. Key factors borrowers identified as negatively impacting their experience included document errors, lengthy in-person appointments, and unexpected caretaking and trav

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September jobs report could be the next ‘bat signal’ for stagnant mortgage rates

Housing Wire

The U.S. jobs report for September is set to be released Friday, and it could prove to be a pivotal moment for the Federal Reserve as it determines how to shape monetary policy moving forward. The past three months have included underwhelming data in the labor market. In August, nonfarm payrolls expanded by 142,000 positions — below the Dow Jones consensus forecast of 161,000.

Mortgage 381
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KW and other firms supporting agents impacted by hurricanes

Real Estate News

KW Cares has sent more than 450 generators to associates in the Carolinas, while RE/MAX and Anywhere are helping direct funds to affected agents.

Agents 246
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Illinois homebuyers file new class-action commission suit

Inman

The suit names Equity Realtors, HomeSmart International and Fathom Realty as defendants. It also describes NAR as a co-conspirator, but doesn't name the organization as a defendant.

Realty 158
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Anywhere seeks 4 major changes to MLS policies

Real Estate News

The brokerage giant is asking NAR to allow greater flexibility around Clear Cooperation and co-mingling, and loosen restrictions for non-member agents.

Brokerage 214
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Why are some agents still flirting with cooperative compensation?

Inman

Compliance expert Summer Goralik tackles why the commission-splitting debate remains unresolved and whether listing agreements should still include buyer agent compensation fields.

Agents 155
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Scary Basement

Appraisal Buzz

The post Scary Basement appeared first on Appraisal Buzz.

Appraisal 195
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NAR Chief Legal Officer Katie Johnson is ‘stepping down’

Inman

After a decade leading the trade group's legal team — including through sexual harassment scandals and numerous anti-trust commission lawsuits — Johnson is leaving.

Legal 164
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Rebound for Construction Job Openings

Eyes on Housing

After a period of slowing associated with declines for some elements of residential construction, the count of open construction sector jobs bounced back in the August data, per the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS). However, construction job openings remain slightly lower compared to a year ago.

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Where real estate’s major players stand on Clear Cooperation Policy

Inman

Some real estate leaders say the focus on Clear Cooperation stems from the recent commission lawsuits. But other see a deeper question about brokerage profits at the heart of the issue.

Brokerage 151
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3 Ways to Use GoFormz to Cut Costs

GoForrmz

Want to invest in a digital form solution like GoFormz but aren’t sure how it saves you money in the long run? Check this out! Cutting operational costs without sacrificing quality is now more important than ever. GoFormz is the leading digital and mobile forms solution for businesses of all sizes, empowering organizations to digitize their existing documents, streamline data collection, and reduce operational inefficiencies.

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NAR faces a standoff over Clear Cooperation, Inman survey reveals

Inman

Nearly a hundred real estate professionals shared their thoughts on NAR's Clear Cooperation Policy with Inman, revealing a schism between supporters and opponents of the controversial rule.

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Kip Lebaron qualifies for Lamacchia Realty’s 2024 President’s Club

Lamacchia Realty

Kip Lebaron qualifies for Lamacchia Realty's 2024 President's Club We are absolutely thrilled to announce that Kip Lebaron has qualified for the 2024 Lamacchia Realty President’s Club! This is Kip’s first time reaching this milestone, and we couldn’t be more proud. He achieved this by surpassing $16,000,000 in sales volume so far this year – an impressive feat!

Realty 70
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Florida broker arrested for laundering son’s escort profits

Inman

After 24 years of running an illegal escort service, mother-son crime duo Margareta von Lambert and Christopher Jelavic have been busted for using von Lambert's real estate and art businesses to launder their profits. Von Lambert, 70, and Jelavic, 48, were arrested on Sept. 11, several days after attempting to charter a flight to Brazil.

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ClearCast Podcast E43 — Fannie Mae Principal of Collateral Policy Lyle Radke

Clear Capital

EPISODE SUMMARY Lyle Radke , Principal of Collateral Policy at Fannie Mae , joins ClearCast to discuss Fannie Mae’s inspection-based appraisal waiver program, Value Acceptance + Property Data. Lyle dives into Fannie Mae’s approach to appraisal modernization, the challenges and benefits to modernization, how new initiatives impact home buyers, and what we can expect to see from Fannie Mae in the coming months.

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Moreland Properties’ Sarah Railey on ‘Where do we go from here?’

Inman

Like a car that was going 100 mph and has slowed down to 70 mph, Moreland Properties COO and broker of record says it's "very healthy" that homes are taking a little longer to sell.

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Non-Conforming Loans: The 4-1-1 on Unconventional Mortgages

Will Springer Realtor

Mortgages in the U.S. typically meet certain guidelines established by the Federal Housing Finance Agency, which oversees Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Those government-sponsored entities (GSEs) ultimately guarantee their mortgages and package them as securities for investors. Conforming loans must meet specific criteria for both the borrower and the loan, including: Loan limit – For 2024, conforming loans in King, Snohomish and Pierce counties are capped at $970,500, while the limit in the rest o

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Here’s how top real estate pros are thriving post-compensation shift

Inman

Marketing strategist Molly McKinley shares how brokers, team leaders and agents all over are adapting and adjusting to the post-commission settlement changes.