March 2025

Reverse mortgage business in the early part of 2025 has been humming along consistently, though not exactly “booming” as mortgage rates remain elevated and lenders are moving on their own initiatives to expand business and further forge partnerships with the forward mortgage side of the industry. This is according to descriptions by some of the major lenders themselves, as well as a conversation...

Advocus National Title Insurance Co. has introduced GO Live, a virtual closing system designed to streamline real estate transactions for attorneys and their clients. The platform, which debuts in Chicago, will expand to additional markets in the coming months. GO Live allows attorneys to guide homebuyers through closing documents in real time, reducing errors and improving communication. The...

The state of the U.S. housing market — particularly its levels of affordability, available inventory and accessibility for those with mobility or cognitive challenges — presents a unique challenge for older Americans on fixed incomes. This has led to a “failure” to properly serve the senior cohort. These are the assertions of a report published last week by the Urban Institute. The organization...

Glenn Kelman seemed unusually down. The Redfin CEO’s playful demeanor and quotable banter was notably absent on the company’s fourth-quarter 2024 earnings call at the end of February. There could have been many innocuous reasons for sounding a bit deflated — not enough sleep or a bad day at work. But in light of Redfin’s blockbuster sale to Rocket Mortgage that was announced less than two...

Today’s new construction report from the Census Bureau showed month-to-month growth in housing starts, but falling housing permits. Both of these data lines are currently still at the levels we saw in the early part of the COVID-19 recession. However, employment for residential construction workers hasn’t fallen at all, even with the decline in housing starts and permits. Why haven’t the homebuilders...

A massive 200-acre property with a 10,000-square-foot hacienda-style home and standout amenities like a glass-enclosed pool is on the market in Central Florida. Listed for $15,000,000 with Kathryn Scheller and Nicole Colon with Coldwell Banker Realty, the custom-built estate is located in Dade City, Florida, and stands out as the highest priced listing in Pasco County. Owned by a prominent local...

Find out how to improve your backyard without any costly surprises along the...

When this Canadian family started to outgrow its home, the last thing it wanted to do was leave behind its beloved neighborhood in Victoria, British Columbia. “This is a fantastic neighborhood that’s walkable to shops, restaurants and the beach,” Robbyn McDonald of MAC Reno...

The National Association of Realtors' 2025 Snapshot of Race and Home Buying in America reports that Black homeownership in the U.S. saw the highest year-over-year increase among racial groups in 2023. However, the Black homeownership rate continues to lag significantly behind that of White homeowners. This real estate market intelligence report provides insight into who is entering the housing market and...

Not wasting any time following his Senate confirmation last week, Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Bill Pulte made a series of major changes to the boards of government-sponsored enterprises Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac according to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The news was first reported by Inside Mortgage Finance. Based on the SEC filings, the Freddie Mac...