Sat.May 18, 2024 - Fri.May 24, 2024

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VA to roll out temporary fix to buyer agent commission problem

Housing Wire

The United States Department of Veterans Affairs will soon release a circular that “bridges the gap” on an agency law that prohibits a VA buyer from paying their real estate agent compensation, a VA official announced on Tuesday. Michelle Corridon, deputy policy director at the VA, announced at the Mortgage Bankers Association ‘s Secondary & Capital Markets Conference in New York that the circular would be issued between now and June 12.

Buyers 523
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MBA: Mortgage Applications Increased 1.9 Percent Last Week as Rates Fell

Appraisal Buzz

Mortgage application volume increased 1.9% during the week ended May 17, as the average rate for a 30-year- fixed-rate mortgage fell to to 7.01%, down from 7.08% the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Applications Survey. Applications for refinances increased 7% compared with the previous week and were up 21% compared with the same week one year ago.

Mortgage 431
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An insurance crisis wasn’t on my bingo card

Sacramento Appraisal Blog

It wasn’t on my housing market bingo card to be paying such close attention to insurance, but this is a huge deal for California (and some other states). I promise this won’t become an insurance crisis blog, but today I have some brand new stats to share for Sacramento and the Bay Area. UPCOMING SPEAKING […] The post An insurance crisis wasn’t on my bingo card first appeared on Sacramento Appraisal Blog.

Insurance 368
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‘Stop sharing broker commissions’ to steer clear of trouble

Real Estate News

A “consumer-centric” approach to buy-side commissions is better for all agents, industry leaders say. Here’s why, and what you need to know about the DOJ.

Agents 297
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Unlock The Blueprint: How To Construct A Better Payment Workflow

Speaker: Timothy Allsopp

Payment challenges often lead to delayed projects, financial bottlenecks, and strained relationships. With construction projects becoming more complex, outdated processes are no longer sustainable. By refining financial workflow, companies can improve cash flow, reduce error, and foster trust between stakeholders. Discover practical strategies for redesigning payment systems to overcome workflow challenges while creating a smoother, more reliable process for contractors and subcontractors alike.

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Fraud, forgery claims are costliest expenses for title insurers

Housing Wire

Fraud and forgery claims represented more than one-fifth of the total dollars spent by title insurers on claims expenses and losses over the past decade, according to a study conducted by Milliman and commissioned by the American Land Title Association (ALTA). Between 2013 and 2022, title insurers recorded 203,181 claims for policies written during that time, and they paid out $4.4 billion in claims related to losses and loss expenses.

Insurance 468

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Crypto and AI are on the rise. Here’s how they are coming to real estate

Inman

AI is reshaping the landscape of property transactions, revolutionizing traditional processes and boosting overall efficiency.

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Mortgage rates fall below 7% for the first time in 6 weeks

Real Estate News

Buyers may be able to take advantage of lower rates and increasing inventory, but many are still priced out, dampening sales.

Inventory 282
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Expect the growth rate of existing home prices to cool down this year

Housing Wire

I anticipated solid year-over-year home-price growth in today’s existing home sales report, so I’ve tried my best on social media to inform people that we have a low bar in home-price comps for this report and the next one. This is the context for why the home-price growth data was strong, which took some people by surprise. As you can see below, even though home prices rose in 2023, the median sales price showed negative year-over-year growth in April, May and June of last year.

Inventory 464
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First American: Rising Inventory in April Had Little Effect on Home Prices, Affordability

Appraisal Buzz

A combination of increased listings and weakening affordability continued to dampen home price appreciation in April – a trend that will likely to continue, according to First American. “After years of historically low levels of homes for sale, the pace of existing-home listings has modestly increased, bringing much-needed supply to the housing market,” says Mark Fleming, chief economist for First American, in a statement.

Inventory 370
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Need Curated Pre-foreclosure Lists to Generate New Real Estate Leads? Trellis Has the Data!

Trellis is a state trial court research and analytics platform that provides Real Estate Professionals (Buyers, Foreclosure, Loan Modification, etc.) with LEADS on Pre-Foreclosures, Lis Pendes, Distressed Assets and more — to help uncover **new** opportunities and grow their business. The process is quick and easy — and all in real time. Trellis will supply you with a link to the relevant dockets, a Leads sheet and access to its UI where applicable.

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Veterans Affairs will suspend rule blocking vets from paying agents

Inman

Deputy Director of Policy Michelle Corridon said Tuesday the agency would lift rules preventing vets from using low-cost VA loans to pay agents until it engages in a formal rule-making process.

Agents 195
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A third of homes for sale are new construction

Real Estate News

With many owners of existing homes hesitant to give up their low mortgage rates, new homes continue to account for an outsize share of the market.

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Off-the-grid deals: Distressed property trends and market insights

Housing Wire

In a supply-constrained housing market , even landing a deal at foreclosure auction has become challenging, but those deals tend to be more readily available in markets or neighborhoods that are off the beaten path. “It’s oddly enough in states where people are leaving,” said Florida-based real estate investor Paul Lizell of the markets where he is more focused on acquiring investment properties in 2024.

Marketing 456
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A Seller’s Market: What Does It Mean for Appraisers?

Appraisal Buzz

As an appraiser, you’re already familiar with buzzwords like seller’s and buyer’s markets. A seller’s market indicates demand is high and inventory is low, while a buyer’s market means inventory is high and demand is low. Interest rates impact the housing market significantly — demand can rise or fall any time they go up or down. When the market enters a phase more favorable to sellers, appraisers may find themselves caught in a crossfire between what buyers think is fair and what the homeowner

Appraisal 370
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Row Row ROV? Pt 2

George Dell

ROV (Reconsideration of Value) is now in the boat. Is it safe? We suspect this will be a long row to get to the chosen island. Just row! It is likely this topic will be the focus of more of our “analog blog” series. To read part one of this series or other blog post […] The post Row Row ROV? Pt 2 appeared first on George Dell, SRA, MAI, ASA, CRE.

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VA will allow homebuyers to pay agents — at least for now

Real Estate News

Comments made by a Department of Veterans Affairs official Tuesday “ensures veterans have the same opportunity as others to compete in a tight housing market.

Agents 268
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New listings data falls for third week in a row 

Housing Wire

New listings data has been moving lower over the last few weeks. I usually wouldn’t care too much about this as its a data line that can be volatile week to week but now it’s been three weeks. The moves haven’t been significant and our weekly pending contracts data picked up this week. But, we need to see more growth in new listings data just to grow from 2023 levels. 2023 new listings data was the lowest ever on record, so it’s already a low bar.

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The Evolution of Valuation Tech: What’s New and What’s Next

Appraisal Buzz

Today, host Hal Humphreys meets with Jeff Allen, President of CubiCasa. Jeff has been an integral part of the valuation industry for a while, and he gets us up to speed on what his experience has involved. There have been a lot of new changes coming to the valuation space. What are some recent changes happening in valuation technology Where is the future of valuation going, and just how long will it take us to get there?

Valuation 368
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Compass CEO Robert Reffkin says the luxury market is back

Inman

The luxury market is back. That was Compass co-founder and CEO Robert Reffkin's primary message during his latest appearance on CNBC's "Squawk on the Street," where he talked about home price trends, mortgage rates, and stock market ebbs and flows.

Marketing 194
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NAR continues its battle to keep DOJ case closed

Real Estate News

An appeals court ruled that the government could reopen its investigation. NAR says that decision involved “far-reaching and exceptionally important” errors.

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FHA issues immediate cybersecurity reporting requirements

Housing Wire

The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) on Thursday published Mortgagee Letter (ML) 2024-10 , outlining reporting requirements that lenders must follow if they detect a cybersecurity intrusion. Effective immediately and applicable to all FHA-insured mortgage programs, the letter states that all lenders “that experience a potential or actual cyber incident must notify HUD via the FHA Resource Center at answers@hud.gov and HUD’s Security Operations Center at cirt@hud.gov within 12 hours of detect

Law 451
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Mortgage Rates Fell This Week as Average Rate for 30-Year Dipped Below 7 Percent

Appraisal Buzz

Mortgage rates fell this week, with the average rate for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage dropping to 6.94%, down from 7.02% last week, according to Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey. “Spring homebuyers received an unexpected windfall this week, as mortgage rates fell below the seven percent threshold for the first time in over a month,” says Sam Khater, chief economist for Freddie Mac, in a statement.

Mortgage 195
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With growing demand, Real launches luxury division

Inman

Several months after Kofi Nartey announced his team's move to Real, the brokerage has launched a new luxury division with Nartey serving as executive director.

Brokerage 193
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Homes.com president out

Real Estate News

David Mele, the longtime leader of CoStar’s home search site, confirmed to Real Estate News that he has left his position as president of Homes.com.

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DOJ: Offers of agent compensation ’should not be made anywhere’

Housing Wire

At a status hearing on Tuesday for the Nosalek commission lawsuit, a lawyer for the Department of Justice said the terms of the National Association of Realtors’ nationwide commission lawsuit settlement agreement represented “an improvement.” However, it remains unknown if the DOJ will file a statement of interest in the Sitzer/Burnett suit, as it did in the Nosalek suit, according to RisMedia , which first reported the news.

Agents 442
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Truity Credit Union Using Dark Matter’s Empower LOS

Appraisal Buzz

Truity Credit Union , a member-owned credit union with locations in Oklahoma, Kansas and Texas, is using Dark Matter’s Empower loan origination system to provide loan officers and members a modern, mobile-friendly experience across home purchase, refi, home-equity and construction loan originations. According to Joe Beffer, Truity’s senior vice president and director of lending, the credit union chose Dark Matter for its mobile-friendly borrower portal and for features that will help its interna

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US inventory rises to highest level since 2022 as new-home sales fall

Inman

Newly built homes available on the market rose to 480,000, representing a supply of 9.1 months at the current sales rate, up from an 8.5 month supply in March, according to U.S. Census Bureau data.

Inventory 192
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Movoto wants to win on tech, experiences — not ad spend

Real Estate News

CEO John Berkowitz says the home search company offers agents and consumers “a better chance of succeeding” than its deep-pocketed competitors.

Agents 249
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As agent and client demand rises, Real launches dedicated luxury division

Housing Wire

Fast-growing firm The Real Brokerage is launching a luxury division , according to an announcement on Wednesday. Real Luxury , as the division will be known, will focus on helping luxury agents and teams, as well as their exclusive clients. The firm said that the launch of Real Luxury is in response to the growing number of luxury real estate agents and teams joining Real.

Clients 439
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Down Payment Resource Now Integrated with ICE Mortgage Technology’s Encompass

Appraisal Buzz

Down Payment Resource , offering homebuyer assistance program data and solutions, recently announced an integration with ICE Mortgage Technology that embeds down payment assistance program support into Encompass. The integration helps lenders make affordable home financing opportunities more accessible while growing business and forging referral partnerships, Down Payment Resource says in a release.

Mortgage 195
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House made famous by ‘Home Alone’ hits market for $5.25M

Inman

The red brick Georgian mansion, known by children all over the world as Kevin McCallister's home, is back on the market after 12 years and comes with a large Kevin Lego figure for the home theater.

Marketing 191
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A closer look at NorthstarMLS’s path through a tricky year

Real Estate News

Minnesota’s largest multiple listing service embraces its “broker-centric, tech-forward focus” as it works through rules changes and pursues collaboration.

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Private equity and insurance companies piling into residential mortgages

Housing Wire

After two years of limited demand, private equity and insurance companies are increasing their allocations to single family residential mortgages. This increased flow of funds appears to be driven by strengthening macro factors that favor residential mortgages over other yield assets such as commercial real estate (CRE) and commercial (C&I) loans.

Insurance 439