Understanding green certifications can help you craft smarter listings, attract new clientele and work with properties known to save money and outpace local market appreciation.

Although real estate brokers are not legally required to offer safety training and resources to their agents, the level of professionalism and productivity at the brokerage may suffer without policies and procedures around personal protection. Two brokers discuss what kinds of safety resources agents need—especially when they're not coming into the office regularly. Listen to "Drive With NAR."

Asos, Vestiaire Collective, Shopify and other companies have started using Meridian, Google's privacy-focused marketing mix model, which incorporates search campaigns to measure frequency and reach. Google has made the Meridian code open source, a first for the company.

The growth of artificial intelligence has made it easier to create malicious, spoofed or scam ads, while large-inventory platforms and fewer ad sales professionals increase the difficulty of screening out these bad ads as well as those that load extremely slowly or reach the wrong audiences. "We're in this place of playing Whac-a-Mole until we as an industry tighten up overall security, and really figure out a way to sort of punish these bad actors," says Forrester Senior Analyst Mo Allibhai.

Nestled within a desert landscape, the 2024 New American Home—a newly constructed property with the latest homebuilding advancements, which was unveiled at the International Builders' Show in February—shows off ultra-energy efficiency, the latest smart technology and blended indoor-outdoor spaces. Check it out.

The use of vintage pieces, colorful tablecloths and layered textures are trending for spring. "I'm excited to see the resurgence of checkerboards and stripe patterns," says Naïka Andre of NJA Interiors.

Agent Michael Steinman strategically listed this Ontario three-bedroom townhouse early in February, anticipating that buyers outbid on a nearby larger property would be interested. His approach was validated as his clients saw 64 visitors soon after, following their neighbor's property fetching $1.02 million from a bidding war. Steinman attracted nine offers for his sellers, with the property selling in six days over the asking price.

Being a business owner is not easy on the mind. There are unique challenges that entrepreneurs face, like lack of a steady paycheck and wearing all hats. It can take its toll, and in order to thrive for the long-term, real estate practitioners must keep their mental health top of mind.

Colby Sledge of the Grounded Solutions Network draws attention to the year-end obligation deadline for local governments to allocate American Rescue Plan Act funds for affordable housing development. "Looking to the future, local housing and planning departments can and should make the argument now for protecting their affordable-housing spending so the funds don't get plundered in the upcoming budgetary cycle," Sledge writes.

Employers added 275,000 jobs in February, data from the Labor Department showed, while the unemployment rate climbed to 3.9%. Economists expected job growth would slow in February, predicting employers would add 198,000 jobs, with an unemployment rate of 3.7%.