pop-a-note
REsource- Real Estate Content Solutions
RISMedia's Real Estate Information Network Member Directory

Today’s Top Story Archive


Freddie Says: Mortgage Rates Steady

Freddie Mac recently released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®), showing average fixed mortgage rates largely holding steady from the previous week, remaining near their 65-year record lows, and continuing to provide support for the housing recovery. Results showed that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 3.52 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending March 7, 2013, up from last week when it averaged 3.51 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 3.88 percent. Additionally, the 15-year FRM this week averaged 2.76 percent with


Creating a Winning Environment

There’s an old business adage that says, “Hire slow and fire fast.” The new mantra seems to be “hire fast and fire fast.” I haven’t decided yet whether hiring cautiously or quickly is the right way to go—I’ve seen both work well—but I do believe that when you have a poor performer on your team, you need to move on...fast! Maintaining a business culture that focuses on and rewards the best-performing individuals is a great way to build a phenomenal business environment. Having a productive and fun workplace, where people are encouraged to innovate and create great processes, systems and marketing ideas, is often the difference between a stress-free and productive office and one filled with pressure and conflict.


NAR Increases Member Engagement with MVP

As The Voice for Real Estate®, the National Association of REALTORS® is America’s largest trade association, representing more than 1 million members involved in all aspects of the real estate industry. With its core purpose to help its members become more profitable and successful, NAR brokers and their agents have access to a wide array of benefits, business tools, real estate market data, educational opportunities and discount programs designed to help them succeed in today’s market Now, thanks to its Member Value Plus (MVP) program, it is even easier for REALTORS® to take advantage of all the incredible benefits they receive as a member of NAR.


ASF Outlines Fannie, Freddie Mortgage Securities Merger

The American Securitization Forum has detailed possible ways regulators could merge mortgage-backed securities offered by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in order to close the pricing gap between the two. The market discounts Freddie securities on the belief these bonds prepay faster because of differences in underwriting and other guidelines. The government-sponsored enterprises always held smaller market share compared to its twin Fannie,


5 Ways to Use the Power Broker Survey for Business Development

The polls are closed and the tally is on to rank the leading brokerage firms for 2012. Receiving its largest response ever, RISMedia’s 25th Annual Power Broker Survey will yield a record-breaking listing of real estate’s top brokerage firms in the forthcoming 2013 Power Broker Report, sponsored by Move, Inc., HSA Home Warranty, Homes.com and Leading Real Estate Companies of the World®.


Home Prices Expected to Rise at least 3.3 Percent Annually through 2017

The housing recovery is expected to grow at an annualized rate of 0.6 percent through the third quarter of this year, then gain momentum and prices are projected to grow 3.7 percent between the third quarters of 2013 and 2014 until settling down to 3.3 percent annual increases over the next three years according to Fiserv, a financial services technology provider using data from the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA). Both home prices and home sales volumes increased steadily last year, making 2012 the first positive year for both prices and sales since the housing market crash, excluding gains induced by the home buyer tax credits in 2009


Building Your Pipeline: Why Now Is the Perfect Time

Generating more leads is probably permanently on your to-do list. But as we move ahead through the year, it’s a good time to tackle this one head-on. Why now? According to recent research, typical consumers think about the possibility of buying or selling a home for 6-12 months before becoming active clients. That means that if you start engaging leads now, you’ll be top-of-mind when the busy spring and summer real estate season gets here. Set yourself up for success in 2013 and beyond by following these five tips: Be at home in today’s online marketplace. Today’s consumers are doing most of their research online.


Exterior Replacement Projects Provide Biggest Return on Investment for Homeowners, Say REALTORS®

Homeowners looking for the most return on their investment when it comes to remodeling should consider exterior replacement projects. According to the 2013 Remodeling Cost vs. Value Report, REALTORS® rated exterior projects among the most valuable home improvement projects. “REALTORS® know that curb appeal projects offer great bang for your buck, because a home’s exterior is the first thing potential buyers see,”


What Do Home Buyers Really Want?

Many in the housing industry are wondering not only what today’s home buyers really want, but also what they are ready to leave behind in light of current economic realities. A new study recently released by NAHB, What Home Buyers Really Want, was designed to answer these questions, and more specifically, to provide the most current and accurate information on buyer preferences so that NAHB members can deliver the home (and community) that today’s buyers want and are willing to pay for. So what do home buyers really want? The first answer is energy efficiency. Four of the top most wanted features involve saving energy: 94 percent of home buyers want energy-star


The Echo Boom: The Next Generation

Sometimes it takes a 30-year industry veteran to have the clearest vision into the next 30 years of the industry. It’s no surprise to Sherry Chris, president and CEO of Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate LLC, that home buying trends, consumer characteristics and needs, along with marketing and communication strategies surrounding the real estate market have evolved with exponential speed in the last few years. Chris has been an innovator within the real estate industry throughout her three-decade career


The Consumer Retention Conundrum

• Only 18 percent of brokerages received repeat business. • Six percent of agents with 3 to 5 years of experience received repeat business. You can argue that makes sense since consumers don’t move that often. • When you look at agents with 6 to 15 years of experience, that number is only 17 percent. • Only 38 percent of agents with over 16 years of experience receive repeat business. Most real estate agents—or their companies—don’t make the effort to maintain a solid relationship after the closing. Yet every closing is a huge opportunity for referrals and future repeat


S&P/Case-Shiller: Home Prices Closed Out a Strong 2012

Data through December 2012, released this week by S&P Dow Jones Indices for its S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices, the leading measure of U.S. home prices, showed that all three headline composites ended the year with strong gains. The national composite posted an increase of 7.3 percent for 2012. The 10- and 20-City Composites reported annual returns of 5.9 percent and 6.8 percent in 2012. Month over- month, both the 10- and 20-City Composites moved into positive territory with gains of 0.2%; more than reversing last month’s losses. In addition to the three composites, nineteen of the 20 MSAs posted positive year-over-year growth – only New York fell.


Bipartisan Policy Center Commission Recommends New Systems for Housing Finance and Federal Rental Assistance

A bipartisan commission of former Cabinet secretaries, former Senators and other leading housing and economic experts unveiled a new vision for housing policy this week, which aims to further our nation’s economic recovery and improve the lives of millions of Americans. The recommendations propose scaling back the government role in the nation’s housing finance system and reforming housing assistance programs to better meet the needs of America’s most vulnerable households. The commission is co-chaired by former Senate


January Existing-Home Sales Hold with Steady Price Gains, Seller’s Market Developing

Existing-home sales edged up in January, while a seller's market is developing and home prices continue to rise steadily above year-ago levels, according to the National Association of REALTORS®. Sales rose in every region but the West, which is the region most constrained by limited inventory. Total existing-home sales, which are completed transactions that include single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops, increased 0.4 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.92 million in January from a downwardly revised 4.90 million in December,


Take the Survey Yet? There’s Still Time

As the real estate market moves further into recovery mode, leading real estate firms from around the country are seizing the opportunity to document their business growth by completing RISMedia’s 25th Annual Power Broker Survey. Due to the overwhelming survey response, the deadline to complete the survey has been extended from February 27 to March 4. If you have not completed the survey yet, please click here to do so. RISMedia’s Annual Power Broker Report ranks firms by closed transactions and sales volume for 2012. All firms that completed a minimum of 500 transactions in 2012 are eligible to complete the survey.*


© 2013 RISMedia. All Rights Reserved Contact Us | Content Usage and Privacy Policy