Seventy-three percent of home sales closed on time in October, but 25 percent of REALTORS® report a delay in getting to the settlement table, according to the latest REALTORS® Confidence Index, a survey based on responses from more than 3,500 real estate professionals. Only 2 percent say a contract was terminated completely.What are the main problems encountered with delayed settlements? Real estate pros report the following: Issues related to
A New York–based rental platform for landlords and tenants has announced that it will start accepting bitcoin for monthly rental payments through its mobile app early next year. The platform, ManageGo, will then convert the bitcoin to dollars using Coinbase, a digital cryptocurrency broker. Landlords will ultimately receive rental payments in dollars.But the value of bitcoin can be volatile, so ManageGo says the value of the currency will be lo
When painting a room, the time, effort, and money you spend on the materials can make a big difference. Josh Max, a professional painter with 10 years of experience, detailed the “right” way to paint in a recent article in The New York Times.Gather the right supplies. Take the measurements of your wall and ceiling to a hardware store that can help you pinpoint exactly what type of paint and supplies you’ll need. Max recommends a two-and-a
During the Great Recession, home values dropped an average of 30 percent in several metros. Now, nearly a decade later, how are those markets faring?SmartAsset, a personal finance resource, sought to pinpoint the metros that have recovered the most since the recession. They factored in several metrics, including the unemployment rate, poverty rate, change in median household income, and the change in median home values.Four of the top 10 cities t
When you and your buyers are touring open houses, tell them to watch for signs of larger issues with the property. Jenna Dougherty and Greta Eoff of the DeMasi Group at Keller Williams Realty in Davis, Calif., shared items that should raise alarms for buyers.Overpowering scent. If sellers are being too heavy-handed with scented candles or other fragrances, it could mean they are trying to cover up the source of more serious odors, such as a must
This month we set a new record on number of members hired. With 12 new salespeople, we're on pace to hit 100 members by the New Year!The 12 members gearing up are Nancy Chou dealing North DFW, Heidi Huff dealing the Fort Worth area (and possibly teaming up with another current member), Tania Sorel dealing the S. F. Bay area, Didier Jow that was referred on by another member dealing the DFW area, Junyi Sun dealing the S. F. Bay area, Rodney
Many renters say saving for the down payment is a major obstacle that is preventing them from purchasing a home. A new mortgage offering says it wants to help remove some of that burden for renters.Home Partners of America, a rent-to-own firm, is touting its new mortgage product that allows tenants to apply some of the appreciation in their home’s value during the time they live there to reducing the down payment. In some cases, it could reduce
The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is averaging lower than it did a year ago, and remains well below the 4 percent threshold this week.“The 30-year fixed mortgage rate fell two basis points to 3.9 percent in this week’s survey, but we closed our survey prior to a surge in long-term interest rates following an upward revision to third quarter U.S. Real GDP growth and comments by Federal Reserve Chair Yellen touting a broad-based economic expansio
Markets in Colorado, New Hampshire, Illinois, Washington, D.C., and Tennessee are likely to see the biggest amount of new movers in the fourth quarter, according to a new analysis from ATTOM Data Solutions, a real estate data firm.The top 10 metros in the country that are attracting the most new residents: Colorado Springs, Colo.; Manchester-Nashua, N.H.; Chicago; Washington, D.C.; Nashville; Reno, Nev.; Tampa-St. Petersburg, Fla.; Las Vegas; Jac
Home buyers and renters can turn up plenty of information about their new home with just a little digging online. Curbed.com offers a few tips on how home shoppers can scour the internet to discover more about a property’s history before making an offer:Look closer at the online listings.Plenty of sites—like realtor.com®—are available to help them search for properties. Many of these sites also track the property’s listing history. Buye
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