How your clients can finance green home upgrades The existing housing stock isn't built to meet increasing consumer demand for greener living. So, if your buyers want a high-performance home, they'll likely need to retrofit a property with energy efficient features. That may sound like an expensive process, but there are financing options to help your customers reach their goals. Two green real estate experts break down the information you should be sharing. Listen to "Drive With NAR." Full Story: REALTOR® Magazine/Drive With NAR (3/4)
Lifestyle changes call for unique client conversations From craft coffee to pickleball and urban farms, more commercial spaces are bringing together work and life. Commercial practitioners who can think outside the box are finding success by paying attention to demographic shifts, understanding consumer preferences and creatively helping tenants realize their business goals. Full Story: REALTOR® Magazine/CREATE (12/28)
Real Estate Trends
Realistic price key to attracting offers in current market Real estate agents are helping buyers and sellers adjust to changing market conditions as inflation, housing supply and interest rates affect both buyers and sellers. "If you need to sell your house, I encourage you to be very realistic on pricing. At least in the New York area, we're past the peak in values that happened a few years ago," says Margaret Lebenson, a real estate professional based in New York. Full Story: UExpress (2/28)
List: Smart devices to transform the home Google's Nest Cam and Amazon's Echo Dot with Clock and Echo Hub are on the Tom's Guide list of the best smart home devices currently on the market. Full Story: Tom's Guide (3/1)
Fair & Equitable Housing
South Dakota city ponders workforce housing development Officials in North Sioux City, S.D., are considering a proposal to construct a Union County neighborhood featuring 136 residential units where home prices would be tied to the local median income. Ninety-three percent of North Sioux City workers commute across state lines because of a need for more affordable housing in the area. Full Story: KTIV-TV (Sioux City, Iowa) (2/26)
Legislation & Regulation
Year-over-year profits soar for Federal Home Loan banks The Federal Home Loan Bank System saw annual earnings of $6.7 billion at the end of 2023, representing an increase of 111% from the previous year, and it provided its members record dividends totaling $3.4 billion. The 11 regional Home Loan banks must allocate 10% of their earnings to affordable housing, for a total of $752 million this year, although some critics say the system appears to be making profit a priority over affordable housing. Full Story: American Banker (3/3)
Fed officials weigh in on interest rates in wake of inflation data Federal Reserve officials weighed in after the release of the most recent inflation data, with New York Fed President John Williams reiterating that rate cuts are likely coming later this year. "We're going to move interest rates back to more normal levels," Williams said. Full Story: Bloomberg (2/29),Bloomberg (2/29),Reuters (2/29)
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The National Association of REALTORS® is America's largest trade association, representing more than 1.5 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries. REALTOR® Magazine is the official magazine of NAR, bringing expert insight to real estate trends, tools, and business strategies.
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