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A Threat to the American Way of Real Estate
  + stars: | 2023-12-01 | by ( ) www.wsj.com   time to read: +1 min
A sign advertises a home for sale in Washington, Aug. 23. Photo: Michael Reynolds/Zuma PressRecent antitrust developments and potential regulatory changes could reshape the U.S. real-estate landscape, making the American dream a potential nightmare (“A Big Legal Defeat for the Realtors,” Review & Outlook, Nov. 1). In Missouri, U.S. District Judge Stephen Bough found that settlements in the first of numerous antitrust class actions are “fair, reasonable and adequate.” We agree, and we welcome improvements that enhance commission transparency, ensure an open marketplace and maintain a framework that ensures agents are representing the interests of both the seller and the buyer. Overreach beyond these rules—as contemplated in some quarters—may jeopardize one of the pillars of fair transactions: buyer agency. This risks leaving the next wave of home buyers navigating the financial decision of a lifetime without professional support.
Persons: Michael Reynolds, Stephen Bough Organizations: Realtors, , District Locations: Washington, In Missouri, U.S
The Justice Department, during the Trump administration, closed an investigation into the realtors organization. The Biden administration re-opened it in 2021 so it could probe how broadly housing listings are available and what fees home sellers pay to the brokers who represent buyers. The government's concern focused on private listings of homes, which NAR banned but left some exceptions, and a rule that requires sellers to pay the buyer's broker. Because of concern about "pocket listings," or private listings not available to the public, the NAR adopted a "Clear Cooperation Policy" in 2019 that was supposed to ban pocket listings but has been criticized for allowing exceptions. The NAR's Participation Rule had required brokers who listed a house to offer compensation to the buyer's broker.
Persons: Sarah Silbiger, Trump, Biden, Judge Florence Pan, Frederick Liu, Chris Michel, Diane Bartz, Chizu Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Justice Department and National Association of Realtors, The Justice Department, realtors, U.S ., Appeals, Circuit, NAR, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S
Barcelona is a decade into transforming many of its streets into green, car-light public spaces. Earlier this year, the city announced yet another major expansion of the project, with a goal of making a third of city streets green by 2030. And as Americans experience an epidemic of loneliness, a built environment that fosters social connection might be crucial for public health. Making a neighborhood more attractive with more walkable, green streets could mean triggering or speeding up gentrification. More walkable communities with high-quality public spaces are much more expensive to live in, indicating high demand.
Persons: , Sven Eggimann, Tayana Panova, Jonathan Cohn, who's, Eggimann, pyi2lKhNzc, Billy Fields Organizations: Service, ZHAW School of Architecture, Residents, Urban, Smart Growth Locations: Barcelona, Spanish, Switzerland, New York City, Barcelona's, Vitoria, Europe, Valencia, Manhattan, Francisco, Superblocks
But home prices are still on the rise, according to a November 28 note from Selma Hepp, the chief economist at CoreLogic. The outcome is that many remain renters, which drives up demand for rental property and the cost of rent. If the cost of rent is 20% below the price of owning a home monthly, then it may be comparable. Rent prices are based on listings from Rent.com. For example, take the cost of rent over five years; let's say it's $3,000 x 12 months = $36,000 annually.
Persons: Selma Hepp, they'll, Suzanne Miller, Miller, Price, Shmuel Shayowitz, Shayowitz Organizations: Business, Home, Empire State, Seattle -, Dallas, Fort, Redfin, Kansas, Jacksonville, Birmingham, NA Milwaukee, Phoenix, Boston, Orlando, Virginia, KY, UT, Oklahoma Locations: Redfin . Metro, Seattle, Dallas, Seattle - Tacoma, Bellevue, Everett, Tacoma, Fort Worth, Metro, Columbus, Providence, RI, Kansas City, Angeles, Buffalo, NY, Indianapolis, York, Hartford, Jose, Antonio, Minneapolis, Detroit, MI, Virginia Beach, Louis, Washington, San Diego, Atlanta, Richmond, Cincinnati, San Francisco, Philadelphia, Tampa, WA, Denver, Riverside, CA, Cleveland, Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Charlotte, NC, Orleans, LA, Nashville, TN, Memphis, Raleigh, Louisville, Jefferson County, Houston, Salt Lake City, Miami, Chicago, Sacramento, Vegas, Portland, Austin, New York City
Inflation Continues to Cool as Energy Prices Fall
  + stars: | 2023-11-30 | by ( Tim Smart | Nov. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com   time to read: +4 min
Both are yet another indication that inflation has moderated from its pace of last year when consumer inflation was running at a 9.1% annual rate. “After fears of "sticky" and "persistent" inflation, the month to month slowing in the core pce readings is encouraging. Core pce has risen by 0.3% or less for 8 consecutive months. Political Cartoons on Inflation View All 19 Images"This report hit the trifecta,” said Navy Federal Credit Union corporate economist Robert Frick. “During October, mortgage rates were at their highest, and contract signings for existing homes were at their lowest in more than 20 years,” said Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist.
Persons: ” Kathy Jones, , Robert Frick, , Zumper, Lawrence Yun, Curt Long Organizations: Federal Reserve, pce, Schwab Center, Financial Research, Federal Credit Union, National Association of Realtors, NAR, Fed, Labor, National Association of Federal Credit Unions, Dow Jones Industrial Locations:
Pending home sales dropped to their lowest level on record in October as mortgage rates remain high. The decline in pending home sales exceeds the drop seen during the 2008 housing bust. AdvertisementPending home sales fell in October to its lowest level on record, exceeding the decline seen during the 2008 housing collapse. But a decline in interest rates since then has pushed mortgage rates back down to about 7.3%. That slight decline in mortgage rates should help open up the housing market, but it's likely still not enough to completely thaw the frozen market.
Persons: , Lawrence Yun, Freddie Mac, Yun Organizations: Service, National Association of Realtors
Washington, DC CNN —US pending home sales fell to their lowest level in 20 years in October as mortgage rates surged to their highest levels of the year, according to a report released Thursday. Pending home sales dropped 1.5% last month from September, monthly data from the National Association of Realtors showed. The pending home sales index — a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings rather than closings — was down 8.5% from a year ago. Completed sales of existing homes and sales of new construction homes, which are also based on contract signings, also fell in October. In October, existing home sales fell to the lowest level in 13 years, remaining below 4 million for the first time since October 2010.
Persons: , , Lawrence Yun, Yun, Hannah Jones, October’s, Jones, — Jones, ” Jones, Organizations: DC CNN, National Association of Realtors, Northeast, NAR, Realtor.com, Locations: Washington, Midwest, South, West
Pending home sales, a measure of signed contracts on existing homes, dropped 1.5% in October from September. They hit the lowest level since the National Association of Realtors began tracking this metric in 2001, meaning it's even worse than readings during the financial crisis over a decade ago. Because the index measures signed contracts, it is the most recent indicator of housing demand. The realtors continue to say it's not just high rates but still very low supply of homes for sale that is deflating activity. The Realtors noted that sales of homes priced above $750,000 have been increasing simply because there is more supply on the high end of the market.
Persons: it's, Lawrence Yun Organizations: National Association of Realtors, Mortgage News, The realtors, NAR, Realtors Locations: Northeast
Hong Kong October home prices drop to lowest since March 2017
  + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com   time to read: +1 min
A general view of Two International Finance Centre (IFC), HSBC headquarters and Bank of China in Hong Kong, China July 13, 2021. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsHONG KONG, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Hong Kong private home prices extended a fall in October, dipping to their lowest since March 2017, official data showed on Tuesday, weighed down by higher interest rates and weak buying sentiment. Home prices in the financial hub, one of the most expensive markets in the world, dropped 2.2% in October from the previous month. Prices have dropped 4% in the first 10 months of the year after the sixth monthly decline in October. Investment bank UBS has forecast that Hong Kong's home prices could drop another 10% in 2024 as borrowing costs in the city have surged to the highest level since 2007.
Persons: Tyrone Siu, Martin Wong, Knight Frank, Clare Jim, Robert Birsel Organizations: International Finance Centre, HSBC, Bank of China, REUTERS, Realtors, Investment, UBS, Thomson Locations: Hong Kong, China, HONG KONG
High-yield savings accounts, CDs, and I Bonds are good options depending on how soon you want to buy. As a financial planner, I have seven creative ways to save for a first home down payment. Automate monthly contributions to a high-yield savings accountOne of the easiest ways to grow your home down payment is to save in a high-yield savings account. Currently, many high-yield savings accounts are offering 4% to 5% or higher. Set up automatic transfers from your checking account to this high-yield savings account.
Persons: , Roth IRAs Organizations: Service
A man walks past an ATM outside Bank of America Corp. headquarters in Charlotte, North Carolina, May 2, 2016. WASHINGTON — The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Tuesday fined Bank of America $12 million for reporting false mortgage lending data to the federal government. "Bank of America violated a federal law that thousands of mortgage lenders have routinely followed for decades," CFPB director Rohit Chopra said in a statement. According to a CFPB consent order, Bank of America violated part of the 1975 Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) that requires lenders to accurately report demographic data about mortgage applications to financial regulators. The firm also employed over 4,500 loan officers, and averaged over 300,000 mortgage loan applications per year between January 2016 and the present day, the CFPB said.
Persons: Rohit Chopra, , Biden, Bill Halldin, Halldin Organizations: Bank of America Corp, WASHINGTON, Consumer Financial, Bank of America, of America, Justice Department Locations: Charlotte , North Carolina
“High-quality, sustainable growth is far more important.”The country is moving away from manufacturing and real estate, its traditional drivers of growth, towards a newer economic model driven by consumption and services, he added. “I’m confident China will enjoy healthy and sustainable growth in 2024 and beyond.”His remarks come at a time when China is battling a protracted recession in its vast real estate sector. But the country’s real estate sector is still struggling with sluggish sales and falling home prices. “China’s real estate market is experiencing some adjustments,” he said. The regulators have also introduced a raft of measures to stabilise the real estate industry, including reducing mortgage rates for home buyers.
Persons: Pan Gongsheng, , Pan, “ I’m, , Stringer Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, People’s Bank of, , Getty Locations: Hong Kong, “ China, People’s Bank of China, China, , Fuyang, China's, Anhui, AFP, Wuhan, Hubei
The typical first-time home buyer made a down payment of 8% and relied on their savings to do so. Why has the typical down payment for first-time buyers reached an over two-decade high when the housing market is so expensive? In part, it's because wealthier first-time buyers — who can more easily afford a higher down payment — have been particularly active in the housing market. In 2023, the typical first-time homebuyer had a household income of $96,000, up from $71,000 in 2022. Last year, the share of first-time homebuyers reached 26% , the lowest level since the survey began in 1981.
Persons: , homebuyer, Jessica Lautz, it's, homebuyers Organizations: Service, National Association of, NAR
Many home buyers do more of the work today finding a property rather than leaving it to their real-estate agents. Photo: Mario Tama/Getty ImagesThe litigation that could end up changing how millions of Americans buy and sell homes was hiding in plain sight for three decades. The current set of rules governing how agents are paid, which effectively mean sellers are the ones who set compensation for buyer agents, date to the 1990s. Those rules have come under significant scrutiny, particularly as commissions have remained around 5% to 6% of the sale price even as home values have skyrocketed and many buyers do more of the work finding a home themselves online.
Persons: Mario Tama
Gen Z and millennials are "hacking" the housing market as high prices and interest rates make affordability difficult. The term "house hacking" refers to the practice of renting out a portion of your home or an entire property for an additional stream of income. Almost 4 in 10, 39%, of recent homebuyers say the practice represents a "very" or "extremely" important opportunity, according to a new report by housing market site Zillow. In Zillow's survey, more than half of millennial, 55%, and Gen Z home buyers, 51%, expressed positive views on house hacking. The average rate for 30-year mortgages hit 8% in October, the highest level seen in 23 years, according to Bankrate.
Persons: Z, Gen, Zillow, homeownership, Manny Garcia Organizations: Finance, Homebuyers Locations: U.S
With the Canadian economy showing signs of a slowdown, money markets are pricing in the first interest rate cuts since March 2020 as soon as April, which would bring down mortgage costs. Still, more home buyers took out fixed-rate mortgages in September compared with a year ago, eschewing variable rate mortgages where the interest rate varies based on current market rates. Since then, the central bank has raised the key interest rate to a 22-year high of 5% in July. The share of fixed rate loans among five-year and three-year mortgages rose to 68% in August compared with 32% a year ago. In the first three weeks of November, 79% of mortgage seekers in Canada opted for a fixed mortgage, said Hanif Bayat, CEO of financial data firm Wowa Leads.
Persons: you've, Macklem, Sophie Tremblay, Hanif Bayat, Wowa, Carolyn Rogers, Rogers, Ryan Sims, William Coyle, Nivedita Balu, Denny Thomas, Deepa Babington Organizations: TORONTO, Bank, Bank of Canada, Montreal, NEW, National Bank analysts, BoC, The Mortgage Group Inc, Bank of, Thomson Locations: Canada, Niagara, Huntsville, Toronto
Ms. Aitchison, 55, who works for a senior living home, advises her family each year that she plans to make the holidays smaller, spending less. “I’m a huge gift giver,” Ms. Aitchison, who started her shopping in early November. I’m always running around the last week before Christmas because I have to find just a few more gifts.”There are many reasons for people to be more prudent in their holiday spending this year. While inflation is less rapid than it was a year ago, millions of shoppers still feel sticker shock when buying groceries. And higher interest rates have meant larger credit card bills and, for home buyers, mortgage payments.
Persons: Christina Beck, Beck, Kristin Aitchison, Aitchison, , Ms, I’m Locations: Minneapolis
Activity is now at a 13-year low as rising borrowing costs take their toll on the US housing market. Mortgage rates have cleared 7.5% this year, driven higher by the Federal Reserve’s war on inflation. AdvertisementThe spike in mortgage rates dragged on the US housing market once again last month, as activity plunged to a 13-year low even as prices ticked up. Soaring mortgage rates, driven to their highest level since the turn of the century by the Federal Reserve's war on inflation, have fueled the housing-market slowdown. As a result, existing homeowners have opted to cling to the historically low mortgage rates they locked in over the last 15 years rather than move house.
Persons: , Freddie Mac, Lawrence Yun, Yun Organizations: National Association of Realtors, Federal, Service, Biden Administration, NAR
Sales slumped in October and prices continued to climb, as mortgage rates surged last month and inventory remained extraordinarily low. Home sales remained at 13-year lows as buyers competed for the few available homes on the market and continued to push up prices. Elevated prices, together with the average rate for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage nearing 8% in October, have created the least affordable market in several decades. Home sales were down in lower priced categories – under $750,000 – due to lack of inventory and sales grew in higher price categories where there was more inventory. “The lack of inventory and higher interest rates really hitting the home sales market,” said Yun.
Persons: , , Lawrence Yun, Yun, Organizations: DC CNN —, National Association of Realtors, West, NAR, Locations: Washington, Northeast, Midwest, South
The October sales count is based on closings from contracts likely signed in August and September. At the end of October there were 1.15 million homes for sale, down 5.7% from a year earlier. Sales fell in all price categories up to $750,000, but there was an increase in sales of higher end homes. Yun also noted that there are more homes available for sale on the higher end of the market. First-time buyers represented 28% of October sales, unchanged from a year ago and still significantly lower than the 40% share they have represented historically.
Persons: Lawrence Yun, Yun Organizations: National Association of Realtors
Sales of existing homes fell by 4.1% in October as a shortage of houses for sale and higher mortgage rates dampened activity, the National Association of Realtors said on Tuesday. The annual level of sales reached 3.79 million, down 14.6% from a year ago when sales were 4.44 million. “Prospective home buyers experienced another difficult month due to the persistent lack of housing inventory and the highest mortgage rates in a generation,” said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. There is some relief, however, as mortgage rates have fallen in the past week. Some housing industry analysts believe rates could trend under 7% early next year as overall interest rates begin falling amid expectations the Federal Reserve is done raising rates.
Persons: , Lawrence Yun, ” Yun, , Danielle Hale Organizations: National Association of Realtors, Midwest, Federal Locations:
How Buying a New Home Could Save You Money
  + stars: | 2023-11-19 | by ( Aly J. Yale | ) www.wsj.com   time to read: +5 min
As the median payment on a new mortgage creeps toward $2,200, most buyers are desperate to save cash wherever they can. They’re offering lower mortgage ratesIf slashed prices aren’t enough to get a mortgage payment in your budget, builders have another offer: A lower mortgage rate. (Essentially, the builder prepays the lender the interest for the years the mortgage rate is reduced). NAHB’s data shows that 29% of builders offered mortgage rate buydowns in October. “Many builders are using sales incentives—including mortgage rate buydowns—as a method of addressing housing affordability headwinds,” says Robert Dietz, chief economist at NAHB.
Persons: Aly J, , Nick Bailey, Max, Robert Dietz, buydowns —, Lennar, what’s, Angel Conlin, Pat Howard Organizations: Yale, Builders, National Association of Home Builders, , NAHB, Kin Insurance Locations: Denver, Chicago, , Policygenius
What they do results from neurons firing in assorted regions of the brain, the product of an array of causes they can’t control. Every now and then someone bursts out crying — a member of his family has been killed, or his house destroyed. • Join us on Twitter and FacebookThere was no visible sign of progress on the wars in Gaza and Ukraine. Writing before the summit, Frida Ghitis noted, “Biden may want Xi to help bring down the temperature on the world’s ongoing wars and help prevent new ones from igniting. “Today’s miseries of flying derive from this choice to deregulate airlines and unleash them into the Hunger Games of ordinary incentives.
Persons: Robert M, Sapolsky, , Sen, Bernie Sanders, Douglas Heye, Tim Burchett, Kevin McCarthy, elbowing, McCarthy, Heye, Burchett, tortuously, Mike Johnson, Johnson, George Santos, , ” Drew Sheneman, Julian Zelizer, Santos, ” “ Santos, Trump, ” Zelizer, John Avlon, Clay Jones, Nikki Haley’s, Nikki Haley's, Nikki Haley, Haley, she’d, Cupp, Hussein Ibish, ” “, Israel —, Abbas —, Fatma, Khan Younis, there’s, , Jessica Rosenberg, Joe Biden, ” Biden, Rosenberg, “ Biden, “ Aviva Klompas, speechwriting, Laden, Osama bin Laden, Peter Bergen ,, bin, bin Laden, , Walt Handelsman, Joan Steinau Lester, Xi Dana Summers, Biden, Xi Jinping, Frida Ghitis, Xi, ” Peter Bergen, Juvenal, Stephen I, Vladeck, they’ll, Stephen Brobeck, ” Trump’s, Donald Trump, Dean Obeidallah, “ I’m, Barack Obama, Peter Bergen, Megan Fox, Mike Coppola, Megan Fox isn’t, Patricia Grisafi, Tupac Shakur, Billy Corgan, Alicia Keys, Mary Lambert, Florence Welch, Halsey, Lana del Rey, Bob Dylan, Grisafi, Ganesh Sitaraman, Sitaraman, ” Don’t, Fareed Zakaria, Jill Filipovic, Travis Kelce, Taylor Swift Judi Ketteler, Noah Berlatsky, Nicolas, Elizabeth Debicki, Diana, Daniel Escale, Holly Thomas, Princess Diana, irresistibly, ” Thomas, Prince Charles ’, Camilla Parker, Bowles, Mohamed Al, Dodi, Spencer, Diana cavorting Organizations: CNN, Teamsters, House Republican, “ Tennessee Republican, Democrats, George Santos of New, Content Agency Santos, Long Island Republicans, GOP, Guinness, World Records, Democrat, CNN Former UN, New Hampshire, Trump, Fox News, West Bank, Gulf States Institute, Fatah, Palestinian Authority, Palestine Liberation Organization, PLO, “ Aviva, United Nations, Guardian, Agency, Biden, San Francisco Wednesday, China, Twitter, Consumer Federation of America, Democratic, Fox, , Hunger Games, Liberty ’, Netflix Locations: George Santos of, George Santos of New York, Las Vegas, Atlantic City, New, Israel, Gaza, Washington, Gaza City, Minneapolis, Iran, United States, America, al Qaeda, San, Ukraine, China, Mexico, Kansas City , Missouri, New Hampshire, Nazi Germany, Ohio, Al
Nearly one-fourth of that was built through real estate equity. With less pressure from interest rates, they can take advantage of the current real estate market, too. They're also in the perfect position to help themselves by taking advantage of the current real estate market. However, boomers can make stronger bids on homes for sale because of their savings and real estate equity. AdvertisementMeanwhile, more than one-third of house purchases in September were all-cash, according to the real estate broker RedFin.
Persons: , They're, Jessica Lautz, RedFin, Jeremy Grantham, Grantham, David Rosenberg, Rosenberg, Merrill Lynch Organizations: Service, National Association of Realtors, NAR, Brigade, Census Bureau, Federal, Rosenberg Research, North, Federal Reserve Locations: North American
John Paulson made a fortune on Wall Street betting the housing market would collapse. His reinvention as a property tycoon opening Puerto Rico to the wealthy is proving trickier. The 67-year-old has spent hundreds of millions of dollars over a decade buying and developing luxury resorts, condos and high-rise offices in the U.S. territory. The island’s government has introduced tax breaks to attract rich home buyers and businesses, and Paulson has said the opportunity is akin to Miami before its epic boom in the 1980s.
Persons: John Paulson, Paulson Organizations: Wall Locations: Puerto Rico, U.S, Miami
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