Cybercrime is posing a risk to an increasing number of real estate transactions, with home buyers’ down payment funds the main target of scammers. Anthony Lamacchia, broker-owner of Lamacchia Realty in Waltham, Mass., wrote a recent article for Boston.com warning consumers to beware about the scam.Criminals are targeting home buyers by sending them emails that look like they might come from their real estate agent or attorney. The emails may c
Shopping centers contribute mightily to local economies through hefty property taxes—so as more shut down, it could have a big impact on city budgets. Just how much do some malls pay?Mall of America in Bloomington, Minn., shelled out $30 million in property taxes in 2016, making it the shopping center that paid the most in the nation, according to commercial real estate blog Commercial Café. With 4.9 million square feet of shops, restaurants,
During the second quarter of this year, median home prices increased at a faster pace than average weekly wages in 87 percent of U.S. counties, according to real estate data firm ATTOM Data Solutions. The firm analyzed a sampling of 464 of the largest counties and found the trend was present in 403 of them.Housing in 210 of the 464 counties—or 45 percent—was deemed less affordable than historic norms; that marks the highest share since 2009,
Interest rates for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage took another dip this week, setting a new low for 2017, Freddie Mac reported in its weekly mortgage market survey.“The 30-year mortgage rate fell 2 basis points to 3.88 percent this week,” says Sean Becketti, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. “However, the majority of our survey was conducted prior to Tuesday’s sell off in the bond market, which drove Treasury yields higher. Mortgage rates m
Homeowners who seek an estimate of their home’s value online often find that it doesn’t match the actual value. You need to know how to talk to your clients about this discrepancy, and the Economists’ Outlook blog, which is run by the National Association of REALTORS®, recently offered tips from data scientist Karen Belita.She notes that Automated Valuation Models, or AVMs, are based on computer algorithms and calculations that “take di
Some urban areas are great for both buying and rentingWhen searching for a home, deciding whether to rent or buy can be a daunting task. The choice is one of the biggest decisions that many adults make in their lives.Many younger people have been renters for most of their adult lives, which makes the leap into homeownership a difficult one. The costs of buying can vary more than renting, but there are many hidden costs that can be overlooked, mak
'Since demand is exceeding supply and financing is available, there is nothing right now to keep prices from going up'Key Takeaways The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA Index, covering all nine U.S. census divisions, reported a 5.5 percent annual gain in April, down from 5.6 percent last month.April’s S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index numbers set a fifth consecutive all-time high — a trend that isn’t expecte
A new survey of 30 large cities in the United States shows that the cost of water utilities has risen by up to 150 percent over the last seven years.The data from Circle of Blue, a group of journalists and scientists tracking water issues, shows that in some cities, a family of four using 12,000 gallons a month—which is considered average household use—could pay up to $154 per month.That was the rate for Santa Fe, N.M., with San Francisco com
Ongoing inventory shortages are propelling home prices higher, causing pending home sales to slump for the third consecutive month, the National Association of REALTORS® reported Wednesday. None of the major regions of the U.S. saw an increase in contract activity in May.NAR’s Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings, dropped 0.8 percent to a reading of 108.5 in May. The index is 1.7 percent below a year
Mortgage rates are hovering at a six-month low, yet mortgage demand is decreasing. And high-end buyers are taking the lion's share of the blame.Total mortgage application activity for refinancings and home purchases plunged 6.2 percent last week on a week-over-week seasonally adjusted basis, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported Wednesday. The index is now 17 percent below where it was a year ago.Broken out, home purchase applications dropped
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