Since mortgage rates have headed higher again, I was anticipating that today’s housing starts report would be the last decent print before the effects of higher mortgage rates hit the builders, but even this report was disappointing. We had a good few months of positive builder confidence data for the new home sector and positive purchase application data for existing home sales. However, mortgage...

With a little more than two weeks remaining until Election Day, the policy positions of the major political parties’ nominees for president — Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump — have been under the microscope. Each of their potential policies toward the Federal Housing Administration (FHA)’s Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) program have already been documented by...

When older homeowners wish to access a portion of their equity, there are multiple options. Of course, selling the home is generally not desirable. A cash-out refinance is also not a prudent pathway for retirees. A refinance not only saddles the homeowner with a required monthly payment but will also typically result in a higher interest rate for those that refinanced in the last decade. The Home...

California-based Provident Funding Associates LLC is getting out of the Florida condo lending business, it told broker partners on Friday. In an email sent Friday morning, Provident said that it would “no longer be accepting new applications for condominiums” effective that day. Provident told broker partners that all loans in the pipeline must be locked by 11:59 p.m. PST on Oct. 31 or they’ll be...

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...