The blistering cold temperatures throughout the country this week may put some properties at risk of damage. Watch out for these signs.

Sales managers can suggest their teams ask existing customers for referrals to divisions within their companies, to businesses that are part of their larger family of companies and to their suppliers. "Those internal referrals will produce more sales quickly than, of course, your new prospects," sales consultant Colleen Francis says.

TikTok outshone other platforms with an average 5.69% engagement rate in 2022 while Twitter, Facebook and Instagram saw decreasing rates between 2020 and 2022, and averaged less than 1%, per Rival IQ's analysis of social media activity for 2,100 businesses. Instagram yielded the highest engagement among the three platforms with a 0.47% average.

As borrowing costs increase, rate dispersion among lenders is growing. Your clients could save up to $1,200 annually by shopping around for a loan, experts say.

The Iowa Association of REALTORS® is tracking an uptick in pending sales compared with the end of 2022. "People are back out looking and ready to make that move," association President Krista Clark says.

A family of six moved from renting in New York City to purchasing a $1.7 million Colonial Revival home in suburban New Jersey. The home was purchased in 2021 amid competing offers with an extensive renovation to follow.

From security to building automation, technology is changing the apartment management industry. Apps to control building access and automated updates to tenant rolls are among current innovations.

Pam Graves, who participated in mission trips to Uganda, helped a local cook open a culinary school to teach abuse victims a trade to support themselves.

An Apartment List analysis finds stagnation in Black homeownership rates, a contributing factor to the persistent racial wealth gap. "A legacy of institutional racism has created cultural, political and financial barriers that have suppressed Black homeownership for generations, highlighting the housing market's role in the nation's enduring wealth gap," according to researchers.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has said the world economy is on a stronger footing than what had appeared probable toward the end of last year. Yellen has noted a U.S. plan for $10 billion in aid for Ukraine, speaking at a Group of 20 meeting in India on the eve of the first anniversary of Russia's invasion.

Despite several Federal Reserve rate increases last year, the U.S. economy continues to grow, the labor market remains strong and inflation is not cooling as much as expected, experts say. Those conditions, "could be the recipe the Fed needs to keep raising rates," said Mike Loewengart, head of model portfolio construction at Morgan Stanley Global Investment Office.