There is a growing trend in the real estate industry that puts sellers at a serious disadvantage: private, or “off-market,” listings.
While many brokerages promote private listings as a premium service, sellers are being misled by sacrificing maximum exposure and higher offers in exchange for a strategy that primarily benefits the brokerage and agent.
This week, the Federal Reserve is holding a crucial meeting that could significantly influence the housing market in 2025 and 2026. The outcome could set the stage for mortgage rate cuts or a pause in action until there are shifts in the labor market. As many have observed, President Trump has expressed dissatisfaction with Jerome Powell’s reluctance to lower rates. While replacing Powell is not currently an option, a leadership change will occur next year.
Another jobs week has come and gone, and while we see some signs of a slowdown in the labor market, it’s not breaking. Since 2022, I have suggested that to get mortgage rates below 6% with a longer duration, we need to see either a shift in the labor market or additional rate cuts that would lower the Fed Funds rate to around 3.5% or below.
Top 10 U.S. mortgage lender Rate is investing in the nonqualified mortgage (non-QM) space by launching a new suite of products. It aims to attract borrowers with nontraditional financial profiles, including self-employed individuals, small-business owners, freelancers and real estate investors.
The reverse mortgage industry’s premier trade association held its first event of 2025 this past week. While the mood was generally upbeat among the roughly 150 attendees who made the journey to Irvine, California, for the event hosted by the National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association (NRMLA), there was also an acknowledgement of challenges faced by the industry when it comes to getting the word out about reverse mortgages.
Mortgage technology provider Sagent has announced a new partnership with LERETA, a company specializing in real estate tax and flood services, to integrate LERETA’s solutions into Sagent’s platform.
The collaboration aims to give mortgage servicers streamlined access to real-time tax data, flood zone determinations, payment processing and automated monitoring through Sagent’s Partner Program.
Property taxes are rising dramatically across the country, and that reality has the potential to hit seniors living on a fixed income hardest of all. On top of that, keeping up with property tax and insurance costs are key requirements to keep any mortgage in good standing, whether it’s a forward or reverse loan.
The National Association of Realtors‘ (NAR) speech code, formally known as Standard of Practice 10-5, has sparked a contentious debate within the real estate industry.
Critics argue that it infringes upon free speech rights, while supporters assert it’s a necessary measure to uphold ethical standards and protect marginalized communities.
The nomination of Jonathan McKernan to lead the besieged Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) remains uncertain. While his nomination was passed out of the Senate Banking Committee nearly two months ago, it has remained on the executive calendar of the Senate without being scheduled for a vote.
eXp Luxury, the upscale division of real estate brokerage eXp Realty, is teaming with MORE Seller Financing to give luxury home sellers new tools to attract buyers and improve listing performance in a high interest rate environment.
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