There are bright spots in the real estate market! The National Association of Home Builders' First American Improving Markets Index reveals that key metropolitan areas have shown recent improvement in housing permits, employment, and housing prices. Read More

If you're a newer agent in need of a little business, there's no downside to volunteering for floor time, and plenty of upside. Read More

AARP examined home prices, property- and sales-tax rates, cost of living, as well as recreation, climate, arts and cultures to come up with the best towns to retire to. Read More

Is this raising a red flag about our management company? When there is Task Force meeting, should it be open to the members? Read More

Fall is a welcome reprieve from the oppressive heat of Summer. It also offers homeowners all across the country a chance to ready their homes for winter. Read More

Recently reported data regarding U.S. jobs is having a negative impact on global markets throughout the world. As stocks have suffered, the sluggish economy is keeping low mortgage rates in place as investors continue to choose safe assets. Read More

Headline news like "Vancouver Dropped as Most Liveable City" is not always the best news to support decisions to buy or sell real estate. PJ Wade offers solid suggestions on discovering the facts behind headlines. Read More

FHA and VA have historically been more stringent than conventional lenders with respect to issues such as peeling paint, unpermitted additions, and non-fully functioning appliances. Nowadays, though, it seems just as likely that a real or perceived deficiency in the ...Read More

Real estate is in a holding pattern. Professionals and sellers, alike, keep looking for signs that the market will beat what ails it. This week, though, saw sales declines, flat commercial vacancy rates, as well as meager new home sales. Read More

There is a series of mistakes that prevent most salespeople from reaching the Champion level in their objection handling. Read More

It made headlines when it emerged on the market in early 2009, but here's a refresher on President Obama's Making Home Affordable Program. Read More

From April to June, foreclosures constituted about one-third of all home sales during the spring quarter and were "six times the percentage of foreclosures in a healthy housing market", according to The Washington Post. Read More

Freddie Mac released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS), showing mortgage rates declining amid continued weak economic and housing data. While the 30-year fixed held steady, the 5-year ARM set a new all-time record low having fallen ...Read More

In the past 24 months, nine in 10 real estate agents have been involved in buying, selling or showing a home equipped with technology, ranging from more established systems to newer technologies. Read More

The latest pending home sales numbers reveal that housing is still struggling to recover after a ripple effect of the subprime crisis and the deep recession of 2009. Last month's decline in pending home sales is more evidence that housing ...Read More

HOA boards are faced with a challenge. They have limited time and resources, yet must meet the financial obligations of the reserve study by following a funding plan that provides adequate member contributions and additional revenue from prudent investment of ...Read More

When couples divorce and their property is divided, their "matrimonial home" is considered a unique asset and special rules apply in all Canadian provinces. Here are some of the legal implications when the family home is sold after a divorce. Read More

One respect in which short sale listings differ from standard sales is that the compensation offered to potential buyer agents is This can be a cause of confusion, and sometimes a cause of conflict and consternation. Read More

There's good reason that over half of all Americans are homeowners. Social and financial benefits are key factors when it comes to deciding to buy. Homeownership allows people to grow wealth slowly over time, to hold assets that build equity, ...Read More

When it comes to home affordability, levels are at near record generational highs. How are other segments of the market playing out? Columnist Carla Hill shares the week's real estate highlights. Read More