Housing Wire
MARCH 31, 2025
There are three big trends in the spring 2025 housing market: Supply continues to build. This is measurable in both the total unsold inventory and the number of new listings each week. Because each week we have 815% more sellers than last year, the total inventory will continue to build unless and until demand shifts dramatically, which would require notably lower mortgage rates.
Appraisal Buzz
MARCH 31, 2025
According to Fannie Maes Economic and Strategic Research (ESR) Group , mortgage rates are now expected to end 2025 and 2026 at 6.3% and 6.2%, respectively, downward revisions of three-tenths for each. Research from the ESR Group found that the lower mortgage rate outlook resulted in a small upward revision to existing-home sales outlook in 2025, though expectations for total home sales remain subdued.
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Housing Wire
MARCH 30, 2025
Homeowner delinquency rates are rising from record low levels but arent even back to pre-COVID-19 levels yet. This weekend, there has been a lot of discussion on social media surrounding homeowners’ delinquency data. This situation has prompted me to write this article and bring some reality into this discussion because the narrative being pushed is simply not true.
Sacramento Appraisal Blog
MARCH 12, 2025
Tame. That’s a good way to describe the spring season so far. We are definitely seeing signs of seasonality, but the market isn’t blazing hot either. Historically, the housing market really picks up in March, so let’s talk about that (and touch base on condos). This post is designed to skim quickly or digest slowly. […] The post A tame housing market & condo issues first appeared on Sacramento Appraisal Blog.
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Eyes on Housing
MARCH 31, 2025
NAHB recently released its 2025 Priced-Out Analysis, highlighting the housing affordability challenge. While previous posts discussed the impacts of rising home prices and interest rates on affordability, this post focuses on the related U.S. housing affordability pyramid. The pyramid reveals that 70% of households (94 million) cannot afford a $400,000 home, while the estimated median.
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Housing Wire
MARCH 15, 2025
Earlier this year, when mortgage rates soared to 7.26%, a cloud of worry hung over the housing market many feared that home sales would tumble in 2025, fueled by concerns about inflation and tariffs. But when it seemed doom and gloom would prevail, the 10-year yield dropped, pulling mortgage rates lower in a lovely slow dance. This unexpected turn of events breathed new life into the market, pushing purchase application data into positive territory for the year.
Housing Wire
MARCH 31, 2025
Rocket Companies is buying Mr. Cooper , America’s largest mortgage servicer, in a market-shattering deal that could reshape the mortgage industry for years to come. The Detroit-based fintech , which is also in the midst of acquiring real estate brokerage and home search portal Redfin for $1.75 billion , is paying an equity value of $9.4 billion in stock, the companies said in a statement early Monday morning.
Housing Wire
MARCH 17, 2025
Not wasting any time following his Senate confirmation last week, Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Bill Pulte made a series of major changes to the boards of government-sponsored enterprises Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac according to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The news was first reported by Inside Mortgage Finance.
Housing Wire
MARCH 24, 2025
Home sellers who did not list their properties on the MLS lost out on more than $1 billion in sale proceeds over the past two years, according to a study published Monday by Zillow. The study also found that these losses were deepest in communities of color. Zillow defined communities of color as ZIP codes where a majority of households are headed by Blacks , Hispanics , Asian Americans, Pacific Islanders or Native Americans.
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Housing Wire
MARCH 5, 2025
Mortgage applications increased 20.4% from one week earlier on a seasonally adjusted basis as buyers pounced on lower rates , according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Associations (MBA) weekly mortgage applications survey for the week ending Feb. 28, 2025. On an unadjusted basis, applications increased 22% compared with the previous week. The refinance index increased 37% from the previous week and was 83% higher than the same week one year ago.
Housing Wire
MARCH 4, 2025
March figures to be a crucial month for gauging consumer interest in the 2025 housing market. The pace of home sales remains near a 30-year low point as home prices and mortgage rates keep potential borrowers in wait-and-see mode. But mortgage rates have posted an unusually large decline in the past week. On Tuesday, HousingWires Mortgage Rates Center showed that the average 30-year conforming rate was 6.89%, down 12 basis points (bps) from a week ago.
Housing Wire
MARCH 12, 2025
Mortgage applications increased 11.2% on a seasonally adjusted basis from last week, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Associations (MBA) weekly mortgage applications survey for the week ending March 7, 2025. On an unadjusted basis, the index increased 12% compared to last week. The refinance index saw a 16% uptick from the previous week and was 90% higher than the same week one year ago, largely driven by a dip in the 30-year fixed rate observed by the MBA.
Housing Wire
MARCH 3, 2025
Keller Williams has entered into a strategic partnership with private equity firm Stone Point Capital , according to an announcement on Monday. Stone Point is no stranger to the real estate industry, as it also holds strategic investments in Lone Wolf Technologies , Homepoint , CoreLogic and Meridian. This is an exciting milestone for all Keller Williams agents and franchisees, Gary Keller, the co-founder and executive chairman of Keller Williams, said in a prepared statement.
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Housing Wire
MARCH 18, 2025
Todays new construction report from the Census Bureau showed month-to-month growth in housing starts, but falling housing permits. Both of these data lines are currently still at the levels we saw in the early part of the COVID-19 recession. However, employment for residential construction workers hasnt fallen at all, even with the decline in housing starts and permits.
Housing Wire
MARCH 18, 2025
Glenn Kelman seemed unusually down. The Redfin CEOs playful demeanor and quotable banter was notably absent on the companys fourth-quarter 2024 earnings call at the end of February. There could have been many innocuous reasons for sounding a bit deflated not enough sleep or a bad day at work. But in light of Redfins blockbuster sale to Rocket Mortgage that was announced less than two weeks later, hindsight dictates that Kelman may have known that the end of independence was coming for the compa
Housing Wire
MARCH 21, 2025
The national delinquency rate edged up 5 basis points (bps) to 3.53% in February, which marked a month-over-month change of 1.45% and a year-over-year change of 5.69%. That’s according to Intercontinental Exchange’s (ICE) first look for its February 2025 month-end mortgage performance statistics. Today’s first look at the data revealed that FHA mortgages accounted for 90% of the 131,000 year-over-year rise in the number of delinquencies , despite making up less than 15% of all
Housing Wire
MARCH 3, 2025
If you thought winning a listing was challenging, just wait until you have to start telling a homeowner what to do with their home in order to sell it quickly. Home staging is your chance to transform a property into a home that buyers cant wait to get their hands on. Homeowners can be reluctant to make some of these changes, but its your job to guide them through the process.
Appraisal Buzz
MARCH 31, 2025
Detroit-based fintech platform Rocket Companies has announced the acquisition of Mr. Cooper Group Inc. in an all-stock transaction for $9.4 billion in equity value. After the acquisition, Rockets combined servicing book will be worth a reported $2.1 trillion across nearly 10 million clients, or one in every six mortgages in America. Servicing is a critical pillar of homeownershipalongside home search and mortgage origination, said Varun Krishna , Rocket CEO.
Housing Wire
MARCH 5, 2025
A large majority of homeowners (88%) have concerns about selling their homes, with financial uncertainty and housing market conditions ranking among their top fears, according to a recent survey by Clever Real Estate. The survey , which polled 1,000 homeowners at the end of 2024, found that the most common concerns include the stress of the sale (42%), the high costs of selling (40%), the inability to afford a new home (32%) and not selling for a high enough price (32%).
Housing Wire
MARCH 17, 2025
Fluctuating interest rates have been a feature of the housing market over the last three years. As mortgage rates rose, homebuyer demand slowed and inventory grew. In 2025, mortgage rates have stayed stubbornly high for yet another spring buying season. Today, home sales still remain super slow. Our 2025 housing market predictions are based on the assumption that lower mortgage rates will spur demand and boost the number of homes sales transactions.
Housing Wire
MARCH 27, 2025
The U.S. rental market has become more competitive than ever, driven by a combination of rising demand, limited availability due to a lack of new rental housing supply, and regional economic pressures. As affordability challenges push more people into renting the average age of first-time homebuyers has moved up to an all-time high of 38 years real estate professionals must stay ahead of market trends and equip themselves with the right knowledge and tools to navigate and command this evolving
Housing Wire
MARCH 10, 2025
Today, Rocket Companies announced it has entered into an agreement to purchase digital real estate brokerage Redfin in an all-stock transaction valued at $1.75 billion in equity. The deal, which has been approved by the boards of directors of both Rocket Companies and Redfin, is expected to close in the second or third quarter of 2025. Rocket’s press release stated that Redfin CEO Glenn Kelman will continue to lead the Redfin business, reporting to Rocket Companies CEO Varun Krishna.
Housing Wire
MARCH 7, 2025
Labor over inflation has been my mantra since late 2022. Today, the BLS jobs report showed that the labor market is getting softer, but it’s not breaking. This gives us a glimpse of what may happen over the next 10 months for mortgage rates, especially since, since Jan. 14, we’ve seen them move lower. However, there is a limit to the downside on mortgage rates until the labor market breaks, or we get more than 1% rate cuts from the Fed.
Housing Wire
MARCH 17, 2025
At the end of 2024, I wrote that the homebuilding sector could be a potential wildcard for 2025 and that was before the new tariffs on building materials and firing of federal workers. If mortgage rates don’t drop, we may see this sector facing supply issues and shrinking profit margins. Why is this important? To avoid a job loss recession, closely monitoring the homebuilding industry is essential.
Housing Wire
MARCH 8, 2025
Mortgage rates are declining, and recent purchase application data shows a promising 9% week-to-week increase and a 2% rise compared to the previous year. Does this indicate that the housing market is beginning to wake up just in time for spring? While I wouldn’t say we’re experiencing a full revival just yet, the latest data suggests a stabilization.
Appraisal Buzz
MARCH 20, 2025
A new report released today from ServiceLink revealed that Gen Z remains eager and ready to buy a home this year. But high interest rates and home prices could deter them from crossing the finish line as their tolerance is waning. The annual survey analyzes generational trends among recent and prospective homebuyers, revealing their sentiment about the current housing market and their intentions to purchase, refinance or leverage home equity this year.
Housing Wire
MARCH 4, 2025
Remote online notarization (RON) continues to stake its claim as a critical innovation for real estate professionals and homebuyers, opening the door for faster closings and largely eliminating the need for in-person meetings. However, enhanced accessibility and improved security has also come with regulatory challenges and risks that every stakeholder in the property transaction process must navigate.
Housing Wire
MARCH 10, 2025
The spring housing market is still trying to spring. Pending home sales inched up for the week with small gains but remained below numbers seen at this time last year. New listings volume is trying to grow with its biggest week since September. List prices inched up for the week, though sales prices did not advance. There are plenty of weak signals in the housing market, of course.
Housing Wire
MARCH 27, 2025
Self-branded “financial fitness” platform FinLocker announced Wednesday that it will cover 100% of the verification costs for mortgage borrowers who use lenders’ FinLocker-powered apps. The company calls the move an “industry-first initiative.” According to data from the Community Home Lenders of America , verification of income , employment and assets typically costs up to $280 per mortgage application, a charge tacked onto others in an already-expensive transactio
Housing Wire
MARCH 31, 2025
For nearly five years, former U.S. Marine Samuel Royer has spearheaded efforts to pass the HELPER Act, a bipartisan bill designed to make homeownership more accessible for Americas civil servants including teachers, first responders, EMTs and law enforcement officers. The act would provide affordable mortgage opportunities without requiring a down payment or monthly mortgage insurance.
Appraisal Buzz
MARCH 17, 2025
CoreLogic has issued its Homeowner Equity Report (HER) for Q4 of 2024 which found that nationwide, borrower equity increased by $281.9 billion, or 1.7% year-over-year. CoreLogics HER shows that U.S. homeowners with mortgages (which account for roughly 61% of all properties) saw home equity increase by about $4,100 between Q4 2023 and Q4 2024, which is less than the gain of $6,000 in Q3 2023.
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