Homeowners should have felt richer in 2018. Equity rich properties comprised 25.6 percent of U.S. properties with a mortgage in 2018, according to a newly released report from ATTOM Data Solutions, a real estate research firm.In the fourth quarter, more than 14.5 million U.S. properties were considered equity rich, where the combined estimated amount of loans secured by the property was 50 percent or less of the property’s estimated market valu
Luxury home shoppers can have high expectations for what they want in a home. “The higher the price point, the more features buyers expect and that desire intensifies,” says Alec Traub, a real estate professional with Redfin in Los Angeles.Many of these high-end homes share some traits. Redfin recently highlighted some of the top amenities it's noticing on more luxury shoppers’ wish lists, including:Greater privacy: Buyers purchas
Homeowners can become “noseblind” to their home’s own smell, and that could be problematic when putting the home up for sale. After all, the smell of a property can have a big influence on buyers’ perceptions of the home. And no one wants to have the smelly house.Noseblindness happens when a nose detects an odor but determines it’s no longer an annoyance. It then shuts down receptors for that smell. As such, a lingering smell no longer
Real estate professionals say now is the time to purchase a high-end vacation home, and they’re already seeing buyers pick up on the cues.“We are seeing sales up in the resort areas, including Hawaii and Vail,” Stephanie Anton, president of Luxury Portfolio International, told forbes.com. She notes that sales and prices in Vail, Colo., are up over 25 percent from a year ago. “I think we are seeing people pulling money out of the stoc
The real estate community is on alert after a broker in the Salt Lake City area was shot and killed last Thursday while reportedly attempting to evict tenants from a building he owned. Two women and one man have been arrested in connection with the death of David Stokoe, who worked with RANLife Real Estate in Sandy, Utah, and whose body police found Saturday in a “semi-hidden crawl space” in the building, according to reports.Police have char
More builders reportedly are offering incentives to attract home shoppers, including paying closing costs, buying down mortgage rates, and even cutting prices—a move builders are usually reluctant to make, the Los Angeles Times reports. “We are really working a little bit harder to get people in the door and to get people excited,” Mark Mullin, a real estate professional who sells new homes in the L.A. area, told the Times.
The verification of employment, Social Security numbers, and more could prove problematic during the partial government shutdown. Fannie Mae released guidance this week to lenders on how they can continue to originate mortgages. The partial government shutdown is now 13 days in and could leave some home closings in jeopardy as Congress continues to be stalled in passing a spending bill that meets the president’s approval.Fannie also released gu
American adventurer Colin O'Brady just made it across Antarctica alive, alone, and way ahead of schedule.That feat makes O'Brady the first person to ever cross the southern continent on a solo, unsupported mission without getting resupplied or using a kite."This is something that no one in history has ever accomplished, and people have been trying for 100 years," O'Brady told Business Insider before he started the record-breaking trek.According t
Millions of consumers may soon see a boost to their credit scores, which could help when applying for a mortgage. One of the largest credit-reporting firms in the U.S., Experian PLC, announced it will give consumers the option to have their cellphone and utility payments factored into their credit scores early next year. About 46 million consumers who have limited credit data could instantly see an increase to their credit scores from the new dat
More consumers are getting skittish about the housing market. Only 34 percent of consumers say they strongly believe now is a good time to buy, down from 43 percent a year ago, according to the National Association of REALTORS®’ Housing Opportunities and Market Experience Survey, based on a survey of more than 2,700 households.“Consistently fast-rising home prices well in excess of income growth over recent years have left buyers frustrated
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