For almost 40 years of training real estate agents, one truth has stood out above the rest: memorized scripts don’t move people. In fact, they can actually hold you back and hurt your business. I’ve long been called the “godfather of metaphors and analogies,” and for good reason — it’s the basis of all my coaching. Why metaphors beat memorized scripts The reason I teach agents to...

Compass adds the Dianne Van Volkenburg Team to its Great Falls, Va., office — bringing more than 80 years of combined experience in residential and land transactions, subdivision work, acquisitions and new construction. The team is led by Principal and Owner Dianne Van Volkenburg. The 2025 RealTrends Verified shows Van Volkenburg placing No. 4 in Virginia with more than $120 million in 2024 sales...

This Michigan couple with two young kids wanted to update their bland and dated kitchen. Heavy upper cabinets crowded two corner windows and blocked natural light. A small island lacked both seating and storage, and the refrigerator jutted out past the cabinetry. A narrow pantry tucked...

Image Acton says smaller and retail investors are under-allocated to real estate...

Biggest Share of Home Price Declines Since 2012 The American housing market is entering a new phase of cooling, with a majority of homeowners now seeing their property values slip from last year's highs. New analysis from Zillow shows that 53% of U.S. homes have lost value over the past 12 months -- the largest share since 2012, when the market was clawing its way out of the post-recession trough. The...

The plaintiffs in the Taylor Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) suit filed against Zillow in mid-September filed an amended complaint on Wednesday.  The amended complaint contains testimony from a dozen anonymous current and former Zillow-affiliated loan officers and agents that corroborate the claims made by the 10 homeowner plaintiffs. The latest complaint maintains the same core...

Bill Ackman’s plan to relist Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac faces skepticism over whether the federal government would be willing to forgive billions of dollars in senior preferred investments. Even if it did, uncertainties around capital requirements would still limit share value, according to analysts at Keefe, Bruyette and Woods (KBW).“While shares are likely to re-rate up sharply if Treasury forgives...

Florida-based AR Franchising, the franchisor of the AR Homes brand that includes about 40 franchise custom homebuilders in nine states, rolled out an innovative virtual model home in one of its communities. Earlier this year, the company launched its first in-market AR Theatre within the Tesoro Club community in Port St. Lucie, FL. The technology provides an immersive model home experience where...

The Cape Coral–Fort Myers-Naples, FL metro housing market has moved into buyer-favorable territory, with homes taking a median 119 days to sell, 54% longer than the national median of 77 days, according to HousingWire Data for the week ending Nov. 14, 2025. Single-family inventory in the Cape Coral metro reached 7,910 active listings with 4.6 months of supply, positioning the market well above both...

Wealthfront, a fintech known for low-cost investing and savings products, is entering the mortgage business. The California-headquartered company announced Wednesday that was offering early access to Wealthfront Home Lending, which offers mortgages through the company’s automated, software-driven platform. The product is currently available for a limited number of Wealthfront clients who plan to...