November, 2023

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Mr. Cooper hit with consumer class-action lawsuits over cyberattack 

Housing Wire

Mr. Cooper Group became the target of at least four consumer class-action lawsuits after disclosing a cyberattack at the end of October when customer information was compromised and the company shut down certain systems. On Oct. 31, the Dallas-based servicer and lender said it had experienced a cybersecurity incident with an unauthorized third party accessing certain portions of its technology systems and customer data.

Legal 544
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Hack at nation’s largest title company stalls closings

Real Estate News

Fidelity National Financial, parent company of Chicago Title and more, is blocking access to title and escrow services while it investigates a security breach.

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Nation’s biggest title insurer hit by ransomware attack, reports say

Inman

Fidelity National Financial acknowledges that a "cybersecurity incident" disrupted the provision of title and escrow services and other technology and mortgage services.

Insurance 209
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10 Costs of Buying a Home You Need To Know About

Realtor

iStock The costs of buying a home go well beyond the actual purchase price. If you’re a first-time home buyer , you might get a little queasy when the last line of your good-faith estimate comes in at several thousand dollars. And after the color returns to your face, you might also be a little more than perplexed by some of those fees. Knowing what you’re paying for when you’re buying a home—like these 10 costs of buying a home—can ease that check-writing pain.

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Lumber and Steel Products Lead Building Materials Prices Lower

Eyes on Housing

According to the latest Producer Price Index report, the price level of inputs to residential construction less energy (i.e., building materials) declined 0.1% in October (not seasonally adjusted) following a 0.2% increase in September. The index has increased 1.0%, year-to-date, marking the smallest YTD gain through October since it fell 0.1% over the first 10 months of 2019.

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Biden Administration Plans to Repurpose Commercial Properties Into Residential Units to Improve Affordability—Will It Work?

BiggerPockets

Last month, the Biden administration announced a series of actions designed to facilitate the conversion of specific properties to improve affordability in several metros. Here are the details.

Design 85

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Georgia homesellers file their own commissions lawsuit

Real Estate News

The case takes aim at NAR and local as well as national brokerages, while calling out the current system as a way to protect ineffective agents.

Brokerage 338
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Big drop in mortgage rates as unemployment hints at recession

Inman

After breaching 8 percent in mid-October, 30-year fixed mortgage rates have plummeted to levels not seen since September as more investors expect Fed policymakers to lower rates in the spring.

Mortgage 201
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Why Desktop Appraisals Matter and How Agents Can Help

National Association of Realtors

These types of assignments don’t require appraisers to inspect the interior or exterior of a property. Your care can make such valuations more reliable.

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Home Prices Continue to Rise in September

Eyes on Housing

National home prices continued to increase in September. Despite rising mortgage rates, limited inventory and solid but weakened demand provided solid support for home prices. Locally, all of 20 metro areas had positive home price appreciation in September. The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index, reported by S&P Dow Jones Indices, rose at a seasonally adjusted annual growth.

Inventory 179
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How to Build Wealth With Real Estate

BiggerPockets

Real estate investing is a pathway for building wealth, distinct from other asset classes due to its tangible nature. This form of investment usually appreciates over time, providing long-term value growth. Real estate also offers the potential for rental income, transforming properties into sources of continuous revenue.

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What will lower mortgage rates do to spring housing inventory?

Housing Wire

Lower mortgage rates tend to take housing supply off the market and demand has been picking up lately as rates have fallen. However, the recent drop in housing inventory has more to do with seasonality factors than lower mortgage rates. Higher mortgage rates did push inventory higher during the seasonal period when it would normally be declining. However, seasonality tends to rule the day eventually.

Inventory 535
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Texas commissions lawsuit targets teams, associations

Real Estate News

Texas Realtor associations and 20+ brokerages and teams are being sued by a home builder and magazine publisher who call NAR the “creator of the conspiracy.

Brokerage 322
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3 essential tips for estate planning with real estate

Inman

Estate planning is of prime importance for homeowners and their heirs. Properties are among the largest and most complex assets to be distributed — particularly when they’re luxury homes worth millions of dollars.

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Canadians of all ages feel the pain of inflation, suggests new poll

Mortgagebroker News

A significant share of consumers tend to be late in making their monthly payments, according to a new Advocis study

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Rising Mortgage Rates Push Housing Affordability to Lowest Level in Index History

Eyes on Housing

Rising mortgage rates, elevated construction costs and limited existing inventory helped push housing affordability in the third quarter of 2023 to its lowest level in more than a decade. According to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index (HOI), just 37.4% of new and existing homes sold between the beginning of July and end of September.

Mortgage 178
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‘Bar Rescue’ Host Jon Taffer on the “Secret Recipe” for a Successful Business

BiggerPockets

Bar Rescue host Jon Taffer has spent more than a decade finding the most disgusting, poorly-run, money-hemorrhaging bars in America and turning debt-ridden dumps into successful money-making businesses.

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FHFA conforming loan limits increase to $766,550 in 2024

Housing Wire

The baseline conforming loan limit for mortgages backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in 2024 will be $766,550, up 5.5% compared to the current limit of $726,200 , the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced Tuesday. Conforming loan limits are increasing at a slower pace, mirroring home prices, overall. That’s because the FHFA’s conforming loan limit increase is based on a formula related to home-price data in the third quarter of each year.

Finance 532
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Don’t believe the doomsayers — buyer agency is here to stay

Real Estate News

Following the Sitzer/Burnett verdict, the internet has been buzzing about the end of buyer agency. Industry expert Russ Cofano says that's just a lot of noise.

Buyers 311
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Inman reveals winners of inaugural Best of Proptech awards for 2023

Inman

In recognition of the entrepreneurs, venture capitalists and visionaries pushing real estate forward, the "Best of Proptech" honors cap the yearlong expansion of Inman's awards program.

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Bank of Canada not yet dismissing the possibility of further hikes

Mortgagebroker News

Inflation across most developed economies has steadily eased over the last few months, the central bank says

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Square Foot Prices More than Double Inflation in 2022

Eyes on Housing

Median square foot prices (excluding record-high improved lot values) for new for-sale single-family detached (SFD) homes started in 2022 increased 18%, according to NAHB’s analysis of the latest Survey of Construction data. Increases for square foot prices in new custom SFD homes were similarly high, averaging 19%, more than double the US inflation of 8% registered by the CPI the.

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New Evidence Shows That Banning Airbnbs Reduces Rent Prices—What Does That Mean For Investors?

BiggerPockets

Airbnb has faced a lot of criticism as of late, with many cities going as far as banning them. New findings show that the long-term effect is just as impactful to investors.

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Mortgage rates fall to levels not seen since September

Housing Wire

Mortgage rates headed lower this week as the 10-year Treasury yield dropped below 4.3% for the first time since September, according to new data from Freddie Mac. The 30-year, fixed mortgage rate averaged 7.22% for the week ending Nov. 30, according to Freddie Mac ‘s Primary Mortgage Market Survey. That’s down significantly from last week ’s 7.29% and up from 6.49% the same week a year ago.

Mortgage 509
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Real revenue, agent count up nearly 100% in past 12 months

Real Estate News

Strong growth was the theme of the quarter despite a net loss. CEO Tamir Poleg also said he believed Real will come out ahead should commissions rules change.

Agents 301
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Commission lawsuits are piling up. Keep track of them all right here

Inman

In the wake of the Sitzer | Burnett verdict, the number of bombshell lawsuits has rapidly multiplied — putting more pressure than ever on real estate's status quo. Here's a rundown of all the cases.

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BoC to begin rate cuts by 2024's second quarter, market players say

Mortgagebroker News

Experts are anticipating the BoC benchmark interest rate to retreat to 4% by the end of next year

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14 real estate trends Gen Z buyers are looking for

Housing Wire

Baby boomers and millennials have dominated the home-buying conversation in recent decades, but a new generation of homeowners is browsing online listings, heading to open houses and planning their home-buying budget. Gen Z — born between 1997 and 2012 — is making waves in the market with their approach to homebuying. Here are 14 real estate trends Gen Z buyers won’t pass up. 1.

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Have mortgage rates peaked for this cycle?

Housing Wire

After mortgage rates spiked to 8% in October, causing a riot in the real estate industry, we had an epic move lower in mortgage rates last week. Does this mean we’ve hit the peak in mortgage rates for this economic cycle? The history of economic cycles and mortgage rates would say yes, but only if the market believes the Federal Reserve is done hiking rates and being hawkish and the labor data gets softer from here.

Mortgage 497
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Gary Keller accused of embezzlement in updated racketeering lawsuit complaint

Housing Wire

Nearly three months after filing an initial complaint accusing Gary Keller and Keller Williams of inflating key profitability metrics including company sales and profits to convince individuals to purchase Keller Williams Regions and Market Centers, John Davis has made tweaks to his lawsuit. In his initial filing, in addition to Keller and Keller Williams, Davis also names former KW president Josh Team, Business MAPS Ltd. and Business MAPS Management LLC as defendants.

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At last: Softer labor data sends mortgage rates lower

Housing Wire

The jobs report today which should move mortgage rates lower, demonstrates why it’s time for the Federal Reserve to land the plane. The labor market doesn’t show wages spiraling out of control as it did in the 1970s because the inflation data doesn’t look like anything in the 1970s. We had a solid job openings print this week and jobless claims are still near historic lows.

Mortgage 492
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Have lower mortgage rates already boosted housing demand?

Housing Wire

Did the recent move lower in mortgage rates turn the housing market positive? With mortgage rates moving almost 75 basis points lower from the highs, does the data show that demand has improved? Let’s take a dive in the weekly tracker to see. Purchase application data Last year, when mortgage rates fell from 7.37% to 5.99% , we got three good months of positive purchase application data until the first week of February before mortgage rates started to run higher from 6%-8%.

Mortgage 487
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Housing inventory growth slows to a halt

Housing Wire

Total housing inventory growth has been slow in 2023, but with rising mortgage rates over the last few months, inventory has grown a bit faster than average. The question now is: Have we hit the seasonal peak in inventory for 2023? The housing inventory growth rate has decelerated for three weeks, and we were barely positive last week, with an increase of only 59 homes.

Inventory 487
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Bob Goldberg out as NAR CEO

Housing Wire

The National Association of Realtors’ longtime CEO Bob Goldberg is leaving the trade association, multiple sources with knowledge of the situation have confirmed to HousingWire Thursday morning. “We are immensely grateful for Bob’s leadership and decades-long service to NAR,” Tracy Kasper, current NAR president, said in a statement. “It has been a privilege to work with him in expanding and strengthening our organization, and we congratulate him on his well-deserved retirement.