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U.S. home prices rose 4.3% year over year in the third quarter of 2024, per the latest House Price Index (HPI) released Tuesday by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA). Compared to the second-quarter figure, home prices were up 0.7%. And the FHFA’s seasonally adjusted monthly index for September also rose 0.7% from August. “U.S. house price growth slowed in the third quarter, continuing a trend that started in the fourth quarter of the previous year,” Anju Vajja, deputy director for FHFA’s division of research and statistics, said in a written statement. “While house prices continued to increase because housing…

This Clinton Hill co-op, which is going for $735,000, gets a lot of natural light as shown in this listing photo. Photo-Illustration: Curbed; Photo: Brown Harris Stevens For under a million dollars, one can find all sorts of housing configurations: park- and subway-adjacent studios, one-bedrooms hidden in carriage houses or former shoe factories, and even the occasional true two-bedroom. We’re combing the market for particularly spacious, nicely renovated, or otherwise worth-a-look apartments at various six-digit price points.  This week we have an apartment with a giant terrace and a two-bedroom in Park Slope just down the street from Bill de…

This article was shared here with permission from Mike DelPrete for Inman Intel, a data and research arm of Inman offering deep insights and market intelligence on the business of residential real estate and proptech. Subscribe today. As 2024 draws to a close, it’s worth revisiting the portal wars in the U.S. — and how little has changed. Why it matters: It’s a case study that illustrates two important lessons: hype is not the same as reality, and some games just can’t be won. The potential disruptor is CoStar, which has invested over $1 billion in Homes.com to challenge the incumbent portals…

Ahead of a final Nov. 26 approval hearing on NAR’s proposed class-action settlement, DOJ lawyers narrowed in on a provision requiring written agreements between buyers and agents before tours. Whether it’s refining your business model, mastering new technologies, or discovering strategies to capitalize on the next market surge, Inman Connect New York will prepare you to take bold steps forward. The Next Chapter is about to begin. Be part of it. Join us and thousands of real estate leaders Jan. 22-24, 2025. The Department of Justice on Sunday filed a five-page statement of interest in the Sitzer | Burnett case,…

At any time of year, an effective pricing strategy can be the difference between a home that sells quickly at a desired price and one that languishes on the market for months. There’s no time when this is more apparent than at the end of the year, as holidays and family gatherings overtake the urgency of finding and moving into a new home.  Although your sellers have already made a great decision by choosing to hire a real estate agent (which can add about $34,000 more to their final sale price), what year-end pricing strategies can you use to position…

Some parents enjoy having children involved in the decision-making process of buying a home by accompanying them on showings. But is it worth the risk? One Utah-based Realtor says no. Whether it’s refining your business model, mastering new technologies, or discovering strategies to capitalize on the next market surge, Inman Connect New York will prepare you to take bold steps forward. The Next Chapter is about to begin. Be part of it. Join us and thousands of real estate leaders Jan. 22-24, 2025. Homebuyers often see shopping for a home as tantamount to seeking sanctuary — a place where they, their family and their…

After spending their entire career in the “accumulation” phase of wealth building, retirees who then have to transition into the “decumulation” phase — spending down their assets with no additional employment income — is a source of stress for nearly half of American retirees. This is according to a study conducted by the Alliance for Lifetime Income. The study used a targeted respondent pool of 2,516 people between the ages 45 and 75. The majority of respondents singled out inflation and the cost of living (82%) as the key issues impeding their retirement savings plans. Health care costs came in…

“The finalized HMBS 2.0 term sheet demonstrates Ginnie Mae’s commitment to providing innovative solutions for the reverse mortgage industry,” Valverde said. “This program will facilitate much-needed liquidity for Issuers while improving the stability of the government-backed reverse mortgage market.” Valverde previously announced his resignation from Ginnie Mae effective Nov. 30. In recognition of that, he referred to HMBS 2.0 as his “final major initiative at Ginnie Mae,” adding that he is “proud to see the critical policy work completed.” The company also released analysis about the new term sheet that is authored by senior policy adviser Karan Kaul and Stephanie…

As a potential remedy, appraisers are advocating for more transparency in closing documents. Currently, a homebuyer sees how much they’re paying for appraisals, but not how much goes to each party. Appraisers have proposed breaking out the fee on closing documents to show how much goes to the appraiser and the AMC, thinking consumers will question why an intermediary receives more than the appraiser. In June, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a request for “information regarding fees imposed in residential mortgage transactions,” framing the call for comments as an investigation into “junk fees,” or those collected by AMCs.…

In a recent episode of “The Loan Officer Podcast,” co-hosts Dustin Owen and John Coleman explore upcoming trends and shifts in the mortgage and housing markets following the 2024 election. Their conversation dives into new trade policies, tariffs, constructions costs, labor and more. These questions and responses have been edited for length and clarity. To kick off the conversation, Owen and Coleman dive into interest rate predictions following the 2024 presidential election. Owen: Let’s talk interest rates. When I was out in Denver before the election, the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) were predicting interest rates between 5.7% to 5.9% in…