Sat.Aug 24, 2024 - Fri.Aug 30, 2024

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NAR, Move named in new lawsuit alleging sale of fake leads

Housing Wire

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) is facing yet another lawsuit. The latest complaint, which is seeking class-action status, was filed on Friday by eight real estate agents in Los Angeles County Superior Court. The suit claims that NAR, along with Move Inc., Move Sales , OpCity Acquisitions , OpCity Inc. and REA Group Ltd. — which, according to the complaints, are all wholly owned subsidiaries of Move and News Corp , who is also a defendant — defrauded agents by selling them fake lead

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Which States Are Experiencing the Largest Number of Commercial Foreclosures?

Appraisal Buzz

The U.S. Commercial Foreclosure Report , recently released by ATTOM, indicates that the number of commercial foreclosures has steadily increased over time, rising from a low of 141 in May 2020 to 647 in June 2024. This pattern shows a steady rise over the course of the time. ATTOM’s latest commercial foreclosure activity analysis also noted that Since January 2014, ATTOM has been analyzing data during a period marked by the nation’s emergence from economic uncertainty, starting with 740 commer

Appraisal 435
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Nick Bailey returns to real estate leadership in new capacity

Real Estate News

The former CEO of RE/MAX and Century 21 says he will apply his experience helping franchise owners to his new role in real estate consulting.

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LPT Realty rolls out ‘Buyer Power Tools’ resource for agents, clients

Inman

The Florida-based brokerage's buyer-focused marketing and educational resources are made for agents in need of assistance as they pitch buyer representation services, executives told Inman.

Buyers 192
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Feeling the squeeze: NAR settlement terms trigger commission compression

Housing Wire

Although the industry is barely than a week into the “ new normal ,” some real estate agents and brokers are already seeing smaller buy-side commissions. “It kind of started before the [ National Association of Realtors ] settlement went into effect, but commission compression is a real thing,” Brian Huskey, the broker-owner of Montana-based ERA American Real Estate , said.

Brokerage 489
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Pending Sales for Starter Homes Up by Double Digits 

Appraisal Buzz

In July, pending sales of starter homes increased 10.2% year-over-year to the highest level since October 2022, per a new report from Redfin. This indicates that in the lower end of an otherwise “stagnant market”, there might be hope for first-time homebuyers. Middle-class homes (those with sales prices in the 35th–65th percentile of the market) saw a 6.5% decline in pending sales in July over the same month last year, while upper-class homes (those in the 65th–95th percentile) saw an even great

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Realtors file suit against Move, NAR over ‘fake leads’ scheme

Inman

Eight Realtors are seeking class action status in their lawsuit against Realtor.com for allegedly selling unvetted and fraudulent buyer and seller leads. This is the third lawsuit against Realtor.com and parent company Move over its lead gen business.

Realtors 192
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Down payment amounts are exploding in these metros

Housing Wire

The typical down payment for U.S. homebuyers soared to a record high of $67,500 in June, up nearly 15% from $58,788 a year earlier, according to a new report from Redfin. The increase in down payments came despite a slowdown in home price growth (4%). Redfin economists attributed it to the quirks of the current market, where higher-priced, turnkey homes in desirable neighborhoods are more likely to sell.

Buyers 440
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Office Delinquency Rates Reach Nine-Year High

Appraisal Buzz

Americans’ evolving work environments and other factors have led to a “difficult commercial real estate landscape in 2024,” according to an analysis of the U.S. office space market by researchers at Flatworld Solutions , national provider of data science and analytics. Their study revealed the highest commercial real estate delinquency rates since 2015 and vacancy rates topping 20% in job hubs such as San Francisco.

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Key player in Sitzer/Burnett launches real estate startup

Real Estate News

“Our hard-won settlement paved the way for a new era,” said Josh Sitzer, whose company offers flat-fee home tour and offer preparation services for buyers.

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New forms aim to sidestep NAR settlement, law professor warns

Inman

In a new report, University of Buffalo contracts law professor Tanya Monestier details ways in which contracts allow buyer agents to collect more compensation than agreed-to with the buyer.

Law 187
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Commission lawsuit plaintiff Sitzer launches flat fee real estate startup

Housing Wire

There is a new real estate firm in town, but one of its founders is probably familiar to many in the real estate industry. Meet Landian , a real estate startup founded by Bryan Galen, Neal Batra and Josh Sitzer — yes, the same Sitzer who filed the now infamous Sitzer/Burnett commission lawsuit. In an interview with TechCrunch , which first broke the news of Landian’s debut, Sitzer said his frustration with having to pay a 3% commission to a buyer’s agent on the sale of his Kansas City home in 20

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Fannie and Freddie Enhance Tenant Protections

Appraisal Buzz

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have both released additional information regarding new protections for tenants in multifamily properties with mortgages backed by the Government-Sponsored Enterprises (GSEs). The protections are included in the Enterprise Multifamily Lease Standards Policy for multifamily housing providers (borrowers), announced by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA).

Tenants 418
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The new agent playbook should include ‘leading with grace’

Real Estate News

Major brokerage leaders are telling agents to be patient with other real estate professionals (and consumers) as the industry adjusts to new practices.

Agents 292
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Appraisal Regulation Compliance Council Exposes Disturbing AMC Violations

Appraiserblogs

The Appraisal Regulation Compliance Council published a detailed breakdown to the CFPB, which showed the median average AMC fee being charged to borrowers amounted to a staggering 65% of the total appraisal fee, with one AMC extracting as much as 84% in pure profit. The Appraisal Regulation Compliance Council (ARCC) is a crucial non-profit organization that specializes in providing fact-based research and expertise on the complex web of appraisal regulations and compliance issues.

Appraisal 179
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Are AI real estate agents the future for homebuyers? These firms think so

Housing Wire

While some in the real estate industry are expecting to see a decline in the number of buyer’s agents as a result of the National Association of Realtors ‘ (NAR) nationwide commission lawsuit settlement agreement , others have taken it a step further and are betting their companies on it. Meet the AI real estate agent. Unlike human agents, these AI agents really are available 24/7 and will quickly answer every little question you have about the homebuying process.

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Average U.S. Down Payment Jumps to Record High

Appraisal Buzz

Redfin reports that the typical down payment for U.S. homebuyers hit a record high of $67,500 in June 2024, up 14.8% from $58,788 year-over-year, marking the 12th consecutive month the median down payment has risen year-over-year. The nearly-15% jump in the median down payment significantly outpaced the increase in home prices, which were up 4% in June year-over-year.

Buyers 417
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NAR to appeal DOJ case to the Supreme Court

Real Estate News

The association will ask the highest court to weigh in on the case after a lower court ruled that the DOJ could continue its investigation into NAR policies.

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Pending starter home sales soar as first-time buyers return to market

Inman

Pending sales of starter homes surged 10.2 percent in July, reaching their highest point since October 2022 as mortgage rates began to decline, according to data released Monday by Redfin.

Buyers 182
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Tom Ferry Summit fuels optimism for agents wrestling with new NAR rules

Housing Wire

April Noessel was in dire straits. Raising five children on her husband’s salary, she began flipping houses to make ends meet. Her family fell into debt when one of their flips went sour. The bad deal was particularly galling because of the indignities it took to get the home ready to sell. “I was wearing one of my kids in a backpack, scraping magnets off the floor with a knife,” Noessel said.

Agents 418
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Starter Home Affordability on the Rise

Appraisal Buzz

A new report from Redfin has found that the monthly housing payment for the typical U.S. starter home sold in July was $1,981, up 4.4% year-over-year. That means homebuyers must earn $79,252 annually in order to afford a typical U.S. starter home, also up 4.4% year-over-year, and just a few hundred dollars shy of last October 2023’s all-time high. The average mortgage rate was 6.85% in July, down slightly from its springtime peak, but still more than double pandemic-era lows.

Buyers 413
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Mortgage rates plunge to lowest level in 15 months

Real Estate News

Rates are edging closer to 6%, but the downward trend still hasn’t translated into sales as potential homebuyers play the waiting game.

Mortgage 296
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Agent safety startup Tether RE wins 2024 NAR Pitch Battle

Inman

Tether RE's platform includes 24-hour safety monitoring, client verification, SOS alerts, proximity safety times and fall and crash alerts. Agent social MLS app Tuesday won Crowd Favorite.

Agents 175
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Starter home growth is sparking buyer activity: Redfin

Housing Wire

Affordable homes have long been in short supply for lower-income households, but data released Monday by Redfin showed positive signs for the starter-home segment. According to Redfin, pending sales of starter homes grew 10.2% year over year in July to reach their highest level since October 2022. This was in stark contrast to three other market segments that posted declines in the number of pending sales compared to July 2023.

Buyers 403
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Forecasting the Impact of Immigration on Household Growth

Appraisal Buzz

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KW ‘best equipped to grow’ in post-settlement world

Real Estate News

Brokerages need to define their purpose in this new era, says Keller Williams CEO Mark Willis, and training, tech will be key to KW’s identity.

Training 275
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I’m a listing agent. Do I need buyer agreement proof before showings?

Inman

With confusion around the new commission rules, compliance expert Summer Goralik unpacks whether listing agents should verify signed buyer-broker agreements before showing a property.

Buyers 175
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How low do mortgage rates need to go before borrowers appear?

Housing Wire

Even as the real estate and mortgage markets are seeing light at the end of the tunnel following two difficult years of conditions, mortgage rates have yet to ease enough to create a surge of demand for purchase loans and refinances. At HousingWire ‘s Mortgage Rates Center on Tuesday, the rate for 30-year conventional loans stood at 6.64%, down 5 basis points (bps) from a week ago.

Mortgage 401
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Ranking the Most Affordable Cities for Remote Workers

Appraisal Buzz

With remote work now the norm in many companies, employees can choose their address based on lifestyle, not commute. So where are the best cities in America for remote workers? Atlanta, take a bow. The Big Peach earned its top spot on the list of 2024’s most affordable cities for its stable economy, low unemployment rate, and remote work factors such as speedy internet and numerous coworking spaces.

Appraisal 397
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When should sellers play the concessions card?

Real Estate News

With new rules in place, listing agents need to consider several factors when helping sellers determine their approach to buy-side compensation.

Sellers 265
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Josh Sitzer, plaintiff in commission case, launches à la carte platform

Inman

Landian, a flat-fee and à la carte platform, offers $49 tours and $199 for written offers to sellers, but the real bombshell may be Sitzer's involvement so soon after the $5B Sitzer | Burnett verdict.

Sellers 168
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Report: New England leads the country in older workers

Housing Wire

As the U.S. workforce continues to age commensurately with the population at large, a new report by U.S. Money Reserve illustrates that the highest concentration of older workers — those at or over the age of 65 — are concentrated in the New England region of the country. Based on data from the U.S. Census Bureau ’s 2022 American Community Survey released last year, Vermont was found to have the highest share of its over-65 population active in the workforce. 24.8% of the retirement-age populati

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Renters Facing Increased Financial Strain

Appraisal Buzz

In 2024, the ongoing surge in inflation is exacerbating the financial pressures on lower-income renters across the United States. As the cost of essential goods and services rises, these renters are increasingly forced into difficult decisions about how to allocate their limited resources, leading to severe hardships. According to data from the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University , a staggering 25% of lower-income renters are reporting that they do not have enough food to eat,

Appraisal 397
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‘Unfiltered’: No offer of compensation? No problem

Real Estate News

Watch the conversation with an agent who ditched cooperative compensation last year — and is getting deals done. See how he talks to sellers (and buyer agents).

Sellers 253