Week in Review: Things We Liked from the Week That Was

Posted on 05. Mar, 2010 by Sherry Chris.

Known for his ability to predict the market, Warren Buffet this week said the housing market will recover by 2011. Although this is fantastic news, we need to keep in mind that repercussions of the recession will be evident for years to come. Foreclosures and bankruptcies have marred many Americans’ credit scores which will impact [...]

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Week in Review: Things We Liked from the Week That Was

Posted on 12. Feb, 2010 by Sherry Chris.

This week officially kicks off the beginning of real estate season or, as I like to say, the Real Estate New Year. The 2.9 percent increase over December on new “For Sale” homes in January certainly will help the market get off to a great start. I wish everyone a Happy Real Estate New Year [...]

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Week in Review: Things We Liked from the Week That Was

Posted on 05. Feb, 2010 by Sherry Chris.

We had a mixed bag of news this week. Do you want the good news or bad news first? A storm cloud hung over the many homeowners with adjustable-rate mortgages who are paying as much as 25 percent more than homeowners with similar loans. Additionally, new research suggests that a large group of distressed homeowners [...]

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Week In Review

Posted on 24. Nov, 2009 by Sherry Chris.

When it comes to the current real estate climate, we at Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate have been preaching cautious optimism for months, as some data indicates the market is recovering and yet other data indicates it is still turbulent times. A recent survey from Move.com indicates the number of consumers interested in investing [...]

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Future Selling Will Require Increased Knowledge of Financial Tools

Posted on 01. Oct, 2009 by Robert Albanese.

Four and one-half years after we entered this downturn, many real estate professionals still attempt to close transactions through the sole use of traditional forms of financing. By traditional, I am referring to ”30-year fixed”, “ARMs” and “Balloon” mortgages. Yet these financial tools can hardly be seen as applicable to some marketing methods which are becoming  more and more prevalent as each year passes.
Real estate auctions [...]

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The Status Quo is Not an Option

Posted on 14. Aug, 2009 by Nicolai Kolding.

In the coming weeks, you will be reading a lot about our specific ideas on the Next Generation Brokerage.  It’s important to explain why we believe this is necessary.  In our view, this comes down to a matter of necessity.  Simply put, the status quo is not an option.  The numbers won’t fly.
Every brokerage has four [...]

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Part 2 – “As the Early Signs of Recovery Emerge, Don’t Pop-the-Cork Just Yet!”

Posted on 23. Jun, 2009 by Robert Albanese.

Selling through the current economic “Yin-yang”
(The coherent fabric of nature and mind, exhibited in all existence)

The Yang

It is interesting how there always seem to be two sides to every economic rebound. One recent effect of increased real estate market activity is a gradual increase in long-term mortgage interest rates. After bottoming out this past March in the vicinity of 4.5% for a 30-year fixed loan, the current and still historically low rate of 5.5% seems inflated to increasingly price-sensitive consumers. As a result, homes sales and refinancing are being impacted, albeit only slightly.

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Review of February Releases from NAR, FNMA, and Case-Schiller

Posted on 26. Feb, 2009 by Nicolai Kolding.

There have been several big releases over the last few days.  Let’s take a look at each and what figures are most important to those managing real estate businesses today.
I tend to focus on NAR’s closed data while ignoring their forecasts (I’ll lean on Fannie Mae for that).  Because of the way they pull their data, I’m [...]

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Analyzing NAR and FNMA’s January Releases

Posted on 26. Jan, 2009 by Nicolai Kolding.

At 10am this morning, the National Association of REALTORS® released its year-end summary of existing home sales (their commentary can be read here).  As with our prior monthly analyses, we simply want to focus here on the figures that are most important to those within the industry.  Therefore, for both the national and four regional areas, we will look [...]

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Predictions for 2009 – You Tell Us

Posted on 23. Jan, 2009 by Nicolai Kolding.

Where is the economy headed?  When will the recession end?  How much lower will housing prices fall?  How long will interest rates stay as low as they are?
These are just some of the many critical questions people within and outside the industry are asking right now.  For those who make a living in residential real [...]

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December Analysis of NAR and FNMA Releases

Posted on 23. Dec, 2008 by Nicolai Kolding.

Last week, Fannie Mae released its Economics & Mortgage Market Analysis.   This morning the National Association of REALTORS® released its November summary of existing home sales(”EHS”).  The reports themselves have data and analysis aplenty; our goal here is simply to highlight a few key facts that we feel are hidden within these reports for the benefit of those in [...]

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