In honor of Valentine’s Day, we moved our Friday Infographic up a day to share the findings of the RealEstate.com team looking at how romantic attachments influence home buying. Scroll down to see if your city is on the list or head over to their blog to read the complete results of the study.
Many have reported on Robert Shiller’s recent comments on the investment aspect of homeownership. Shiller, a Yale professor and co-founder of the Case-Shiller Home Price Index, is famous for making provocative comments on house prices and the financial benefits of owning a home. In a recent Bloomberg Television interview, Shiller responded to a question about […]
A recent survey showed that 3 out of 4 future home buyers (who are not first time buyers) plan to move up to some form of a ‘better’ home. The breakdown: Move to a significantly bigger home (49%) Move to a nicer home (17.5%) Move to a nicer part of town (8.6%) If you or […]
There is a lot of optimism regarding house prices. The most recent Home Price Expectation Survey projects a 3% -3.5% increase in values for each of the next 5 years. We concur that most parts of the country will see varying levels of appreciation over that time. However, we must realize that we will not […]
The Pew Research Center recently released a study titled Second-Generation Americans:A Portrait of the Adult Children of Immigrants. The report has many interesting findings regarding second-generation Americans which they defined as: “…people born in the United States, with at least one first generation (immigrant) parent. People born in Puerto Rico or other U.S. territories with […]
Where are people moving to and from? Find out with this neat infographic.
We recently posted a blog titled Real Estate Branding: YOUR Promise to the Consumer which explained that “when you brand yourself as an expert, you are making a promise to the consumer that they can come to you for the best & most current information available.” We explained that you must keep that promise to […]
The other day Marc Davison, a good friend and founder of the marketing, design & strategy firm 1000watt, forwarded us a booklet released by Ford entitled 13 TRENDS FOR 2013. It is a must read for all businesses as it clearly states the thirteen consumer trends that will help business dominate 2013. However, we had […]
Many potential buyers are waiting until they can be 100% sure the real estate market has fully recovered before making the move to purchase a home. Here are five reasons why waiting might not make sense any longer: 1.) Prices Are on the Rise The latest Case Shiller Home Price Index revealed that home prices have appreciated […]
Case Shiller released their latest Home Price Index yesterday. The headlines that followed were true but, in our opinion, a little misleading. Here are some of the highlights of the report that have dominated major media coverage: Home prices rose 5.5% in the 12 months ending in November 2012 (the latest data available). In the […]
Many agents realize the importance of building a powerful social media strategy. The cornerstone of any such strategy is Facebook, the social utility that connects 93% of American adults. But how is the best way to build a strong Facebook presence? More and more studies reveal that the posting of strong visuals is the best way […]
Case Shiller released their latest Home Price Index yesterday. The headlines that followed were true but, in our opinion, a little misleading. Here are some of the highlights of the report that have dominated major media coverage: Home prices rose 5.5% in the 12 months ending in November 2012 (the latest data available). In the […]
The real estate market is in the midst of a major comeback. Sales are greater than any time since 2007. Consumer confidence is increasing. Economists are now saying housing is the major tailwind to our nation’s overall economic recovery. However, there is one major challenge that could stall the housing market: a lack of inventory. […]
Many homeowners are waiting until the Spring ‘buying season’ to list their homes for sale. Here are five reasons why that might not make sense this year: 1.) Demand Is High Homes are selling at a pace not seen since 2007. The most recent Existing Home Sales Report by the National Association of Realtors (NAR) showed that […]
Today, we are reposting a blog written by our friend Matthew Ferrara (pictured below). – The KCM Crew Insights come in ordinary moments. At dinner recently, some friends were talking about their hundreds of internet bookmarks they never return to. We’d all formed the same habit of opening ten tabs of pages we “wanted to […]
Several government agencies are reviewing data to determine what will be the minimum down payment required under the new Qualified Residential Mortgage (QRM) guidelines scheduled to be revealed in the next few months. In the original Mortgage Market Note issued by the FHFA, it was suggested that loan-to-value (the percentage of the overall purchase price […]
Last week, RealtyTrac released their Year-End 2012 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report™. The report revealed foreclosure trends over the past few years. Here are a few of the key findings: A total of 2,304,941 foreclosure filings — default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions — were reported on 1,836,634 U.S. properties in 2012, down 3 percent […]
Most real estate analysts are rather bullish on the housing market right now. Sales, pending contracts, prices and new construction starts are all up. The Home Price Expectation Survey released last month revealed a sense of optimism among the experts surveyed regarding home values over the next five years. However, not everyone is buying into […]
The first rule of marketing is “10% Different is 100% Better”. The question therefore becomes: What makes you any different than other competitors in the marketplace? You must decide what differentiates you from the next industry professional. We are not talking about simple concepts like we give great customer service or we are really trustworthy. Everyone makes such claims. You are looking […]
Google and the National Association of Realtors (NAR) collaborated on a study looking at the digital usage of today’s home buyer. The study found that buyers are relying more and more on the Internet as they search for good real estate information: “Nine in 10 home buyers today rely on the internet as one of […]
For over a year, we have been reporting on the impact that the new regulations being created for the Qualified Mortgage (QM) and the Qualified Residential Mortgage (QRM) would have on the housing market. Last week, the Consumer Finance Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced its rules for a qualified mortgage. Let’s take a look at […]
