Key insight: Federal Reserve Gov. Christopher Waller said Friday that he supports eliminating language in the Federal Open Market Committee’s forward guidance that implies that the central bank is inclined to cut rates, joining three dissents from regional Fed presidents during the last FOMC meeting. Expert quote: “You just can’t look at this data and […]
As inflation rises, Fed’s Waller ready to drop ‘easing bias’ Read More »
For many independent real estate brokerages, competing with national franchises’ market insight has long meant a painful choice; stay boutique or surrender your brand and hang a new sign. But Tim Rodland — founder of Rodland Real Estate in The Bahamas — believes artificial intelligence (AI) has changed that calculation entirely. His company is introducing
How independent brokerages can scale tech with AI Read More »
Homeowners are facing a crisis. A crisis in property insurance. A crisis in affordability. And with hurricane season fast approaching, a growing sense of anxiety across the Southeast about what comes next. We have seen this before. Hurricanes Helene and Milton caused more than $100 billion in damage across Florida alone, according to the National
R-PACE financing for Florida home resilience upgrades Read More »
Rocket Cos. is laying out its defense against steering accusations from consumers, claims which stem from a regulator’s yearslong probe. Processing Content Three plaintiffs sued the lender in January, reviving a Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act complaint raised by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The lawsuit accuses the company of steering customers on its Rocket
Rocket lays out its steering defense in RESPA lawsuit Read More »
Americans may need roughly $2.57 million to retire comfortably by 2043, up sharply from the $1.75 million projected for 2033, according to a 2025 Goldman Sachs retirement survey. The increase reflects years of inflation that have driven up the costs of housing, health care and daily expenses. Households headed by someone 65 or older now
As retirement costs surge, more homeowners turn to their equity Read More »
Real estate professionals across the Greater Chicagoland area awoke Wednesday to find their listings removed from Zillow, as the fight between the listing portal giant and the local MLS, Midwest Real Estate Data (MRED), which already includes an antitrust lawsuit, escalated. On Wednesday morning, MRED announced that it was suspending listing data feeds to Zillow
The MRED Zillow legal fight just hit agents and sellers directly Read More »
A new real estate brokerage aims to eliminate traditional listing agents and listing fees altogether — a model its founder says could challenge decades-old assumptions about agent compensation. Showings announced it will officially launch May 22 in New York City, Atlanta, Chicago and Orlando. The company describes itself as the first nationwide real estate brokerage
New brokerage Showings bets on buyer leads over listing commissions Read More »
Rocket Mortgage and Rocket Pro announced Thursday that they have begun using VantageScore 4.0 alongside Classic FICO scores in the mortgage qualification process, a move the company said is aimed at expanding access to home financing. Rocket’s crosstown rival, United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM) began allowing its brokers to access both FICO and VantageScore credit scoring models for conventional loans
Rocket Mortgage, Rocket Pro adopt VantageScore 4.0 Read More »
Housing starts increased in April compared with a year ago, but a deeper dive into the data reveals that this uptick was driven by a noisier boost in multifamily development activity, while single-family starts declined. According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s new residential construction data released on Thursday, housing starts, on a seasonally adjusted basis,
Single-family housing starts fell in April, but multifamily gained momentum Read More »
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) could finalize changes to its Regulation X servicing rules while creating a regulatory pathway for streamlined refinances through the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) by the end of this year, mortgage industry sources told HousingWire. Meanwhile, prospects for changes to the loan originator compensation rule (LO Comp Rule) — particularly revisions
CFPB prioritizes Reg X, GSE streamline refis as LO Comp hopes fade Read More »