Happy Saturday morning! Some great articles in this morning’s Real Estate Resource Roundup!

U.S. New-Home Sales Surge 18% in August
New-home sales climbed 18 percent in August from a month earlier to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 504,000, the Commerce Department said Wednesday. That marked the biggest one-month jump since 1992 and the highest level of sales since May 2008, when the U.S. was in recession.

Is Student Loan Debt Hurting the Housing Recovery?
Student loan debt is preventing millions of Millennials and Gen Xers from buying their first homes – and that is having a big impact on the housing market. According to one recent analysis, student loan debt has caused an 8 percent decline in home purchases among Americans ages 20 to 39, which represents $83 billion worth of real estate transactions.

Convert Internet Leads Without Wasting Your Marketing Dollars
While it is true that word-of-mouth leads (just like word-of-mouth marketing) will always be your best bet from a quality standpoint, it is also true that Internet leads can more easily be generated in bulk and can significantly increase your transaction volume when handled properly.

You Can’t Take It with You: How Brokers Should Prepare Their Exits, and Why Most Still Don’t
Call it an exit strategy or a succession plan, 71-year-old Ed Krafchow, who has led Better Homes and Gardens^® Real Estate Mason-McDuffie Real Estate since 1991 and helped propel its expansion to 30 offices and more than $3 billion in annual sales, discusses his plan to continue working until he can’t or no longer wants to anymore.

CEO Exchange Exclusive: Core Values and a Great Culture, the Keys to Recruiting and Retaining
Kevin Levent, president and CEO of Better Homes and Gardens^® Real Estate Metro Brokers, has proven that if you build a great culture, you can live through big brand shifts.

And in Gen Z Survey news…

The Next Great Generation: Gen Z
Sherry Chris, president and CEO of Better Homes and Gardens^® Real Estate made her debut as a Huffington Post blogger, where she analyzes the Gen Z survey findings, which uncovered that these teens are much more aware, realistic and surprisingly traditional in regard to their predictions for the future and their feelings toward homeownership.