Contracts Flicker in June, but Pending Sales Still Underwhelm Year-Over-Year
With an 0.9 percent gain month-over-month, June pending sales slightly sparked, according to the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI)—but, on an annual basis, contracts still underwhelmed, down 2.5 percent. From May to June, activity...
Mortgage Rates Roused After Slipping for Weeks
Mortgage rates roused this week, with the average 30-year, fixed mortgage at a 4.54 percent rate, up from 4.52 percent the prior week, according to Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®). The average 15-year, fixed mortgage rate was 4.02 percent,...
What Today’s Sellers Want
The following information is provided by the Center for REALTOR® Development (CRD). NAR has been administering its annual Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers survey since 1981. The survey has grown from 59 to 131 questions, and gives us great insight into the trends,...
Forget a Garage—Buyers Won’t Budge on High-Rated Schools
Buyers have their eyes on schools, and with the irrefutable link between the quality of schools and values, a district with high ratings trumps all—even coveted features of a home, according to a new realtor.com® survey. To get into their desired district, 78 percent...
Existing-Home Sales Slip, but Inventory Stirs
Barely budging against imbalanced inventory, existing-home sales slipped at the start of summer, the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) reports. Activity in June declined 0.6 percent to 5.38 million, down 2.2 percent from the prior year; however, inventory...
Why You Should Have a Business Account
Agents who set up separate business bank accounts can track their transactions easier, especially if they also use expense tracking software like QuickBooks Self-Employed.