Worried About Your Commission? Learn to Show Your Value
Buyer’s agent compensation offers seem set to disappear from your local multiple listings service by this summer. And the effects will be wide-ranging.
Fixed-Rate Loan Payments Can Go Up
If you have a fixed-rate mortgage, your payments will always stay the same, right? Wrong. Taxes and insurance premiums invariably rise – which means your house payment does, too.
March Inflation Reading Means ‘Bad News’ for Mortgage Rates
Consumer inflation remained persistently high last month, boosted by gas, rents, auto insurance and other items, the government said Wednesday in a report that will likely give pause to the Federal Reserve as it weighs when and by how much to cut interest rates this year.
Millennials Back to Being Nation’s Largest Group of Buyers
Millennials have surged ahead to become the largest group of homebuyers, marking a significant shift in the housing market’s demographic landscape, according to the latest report from the National Association of Realtors.
Connecticut’s Top Home Sales: March 15-21
The five most expensive recent single-family and condominium sales in Connecticut.
Setting the Record Straight on the NAR Settlement
The reporting on the recent $418 million settlement with the National Association of Realtors and several large national brokerage companies has been so atrocious that I must jump in.
Poll: 3 in 4 Boomers Don’t Want to Sell as They Age
A new survey of Baby Boomers and members of the Silent Generation commissioned by brokerage and listings portal Redfin has dismaying news for anyone hoping for a “silver tsunami” of downsizers bringing their houses to market.
Home Insurance Record Predicted Nationwide, CT to See Rate Hikes
A new analysis predicts that the average annual cost of home insurance in America will hit a record high this year, and that Connecticut homeowners will likely see a 9 percent increase in their rates.
Lamont Proclaims ‘William Raveis Day’ to Celebrate Brokerage’s 50 Years
As Shelton real estate firm William Raveis Real Estate, Mortgage, and Insurance celebrated its golden anniversary this week, its real estate agents, loan originators and other workers got a surprise from Connecticut’s governor.
Put Your Listings to the Nose Test
Nothing turns up buyers’ noses faster than a smelly house. They walk in, stop, take a whiff and are ready to turn around and leave. Some won’t even go beyond the front door.
Compass Pays $57.5M to Join Commission Suit Settlement
Real estate brokerage company Compass Inc. will pay $57.5 million as part of a proposed settlement to resolve lawsuits over real estate commissions, the company said in a regulatory filing Friday.
Why Are So Many Voters Frustrated by the Economy? It’s Home Prices
At the root of this problem: America failed to build enough homes for its growing population. The shortage strikes at the heart of the American dream of homeownership – dampening President Joe Biden’s assurances that the U.S. economy is strong.
NAR Settles Commission Lawsuits
The National Association of Realtors abruptly reversed course Friday morning, announcing it was settling all lawsuits against it over real estate commissions for a substantially smaller sum than it would have paid under a preliminary verdict announced last year.
CT Housing Markets Missing Out on Inventory Bump
Nation-wide, a bump in new listings is giving hope to homebuyers and sellers alike. But not in Connecticut’s three biggest housing markets.
Pandemic Boosted Hartford Homebuyer Income by $52K
A new analysis by economists at Zillow say the income a Greater Hartford homebuyer needs to afford the median home in the region rose by over $52,000 over the last four years.
No Immigrants, No New Housing
For any number of reasons, U.S.-born workers have been reluctant to join the construction workforce, leading to consistent labor shortages and rising wages – meaning the prices of new housing is going up, too.
DOJ Seeks to Block Settlement in Commission Case
Federal antitrust prosecutors have asked the judge overseeing another major agent commission lawsuit to reject a proposed settlement in the case, arguing instead that buyers should be the only ones to pay their agents’ commissions.
Affordable Housing Proposed to Replace Historic Building in New Haven
The New Haven Board of Zoning Appeals earlier this week heard a proposal to tear down a vacant building on Orchard Street to make way for affordable housing.
Zillow: Home Shopping Early May Pay Off
Zillow predicts another hot spring market this year, as well-priced homes are selling quickly and overpriced homes are seeing price cuts.
Appraisals Fail Many Sellers
The real estate community has long complained about appraisals that lagged the market, but the report from the FHFA documents that their gripes are valid: Undervaluations spiked to 15 percent in 2021.
