October 2024

Important Note* Check your local forms for options around discussing buyer agency with visiting prospects. Follow your local MLS and broker rules and regulations and master how to speak to the prospects about their options. Open houses are still a fundamental pillar of the business. NAR reports that 53% of home buyers visit open houses. So more than half of the buyers out there shopping, at some point...

Tesla’s ‘We, Robot’ event was the talk of the town — for reasons both good and bad — but one thing caught our eye during Elon Musk’s presentation. And it wasn’t Tesla’s self-driving taxi. As the company unveiled its revolutionary Tesla Optimus robots, which walked among the crowds at the event, Elon Musk revealed some of the robots’ impressive capabilities. In a video, Optimus was...

It's the end of an era. Bloomberg / Getty Images Attention, Kmart shoppers: The last full-sized Kmart store, located in quaint beach town Bridgehampton, New York, is closing on October 20—and the once-mighty brand will officially part of history. One small Kmart-branded store will remain in Florida, with a few more in Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The store began as S.S. Kresge in Detroit...

A new design comes out every day for the rest of this month, and we still can't get enough. Mackenzie-Childs There’s no tea kettle like a Mackenzie-Childs tea kettle. We’ve been obsessed with the classic hand-painted checkered tea kettle for as long as it’s been around—and the brand’s creations have graced many a stylish kitchen.Now, Mackenzie-Childs is breaking ground with its latest...

No one does cozy fall decorating like influencer Emily Welch. Keep reading to learn her no-fail fall decorating tips. Courtesy of Emily Welch If you've ever searched for seasonal home decorating inspiration on social media, it's likely you've come across a space designed by Emily Welch. Known as @emilywelchstyle on Instagram and TikTok, Welch posts dreamy photos and videos showing how she...

Prices are as low as $10. Better Homes & Gardens / Tyler Roeland If you still haven’t decorated for Halloween or you’re looking for finishing touches to your front porch, you may want to take some advice from Amazon shoppers.Amazon is offering a peek at its best-selling Halloween items so you can see how others are decorating for trick-or-treaters and Halloween parties. While you of course...

No pantry? No problem! One upper cabinet, one lower, and one drawer can become an efficient food storage system when you give it the right infrastructure. KARA MERCER Keeping your food storage area organized and tidy takes some effort, but it's worth it. First, you'll be able to see at a glance what you have and when you need to restock, thereby reducing overbuying and waste. Second, cooking...

Asia Pacific hotel investments are projected to reach $12.2 billion in 2024, driven by increased investment activity, a favorable interest rate environment, and positive macro and microeconomic trends. JLL's analysis indicates a 4.3% growth in hotel investment volumes from 2023, which totaled $11.7 billion. By the end of September 2024, cumulative transaction volumes hit $9.05 billion, up 15% from the same...

Guild Mortgage announced on Thursday that it has hired Nora Guerra, who worked at Freddie Mac for more than five years, as its senior vice president of community lending solutions.A mortgage industry veteran with over 25 years of experience, Guerra has recently served as senior manager of national affordable lending at Freddie Mac, joining the government-sponsored (GSE) enterprise in 2019. The executive...

The Federal Home Loan Banks (FHLBanks) saw significant growth in support of affordable housing and community development in 2023, according to a report released Thursday by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA). The report detailed FHLBanks’ activity across several programs that include the Affordable Housing Program (AHP), the Community Investment Program (CIP), the Community Investment Cash...