Real Estate News
Nearly half of all US homeowners with a mortgage still ‘underwater’ in Q1
Nearly half of all US homeowners with a mortgage still ‘underwater’ in Q1
Despite rising home prices early in the year, a significant portion of U.S. homeowners with a mortgage — about 44 percent — still owed more on their home than it was worth or didn’t have enough equity to move at the ......
Zoocasa moving to referral model
Zoocasa moving to referral model
Canadian property search portal Zoocasa is obtaining brokerage licenses in order to secure listings data, but instead of hiring its own agents the company will provide referrals to other brokers. Zoocasa relaunched today with listings in the Greater ...
Taking a cue from Apple, brokerage builds real estate ‘store’
Taking a cue from Apple, brokerage builds real estate ‘store’
In a time when some brokers question the value of brick-and-mortar offices as technology allows their agents to work in the “cloud,” one brokerage has decided to go big, and build a real estate retail space at its office. Zilbert ......
Realogy picks 15 companies as finalists for innovation summit
Realogy picks 15 companies as finalists for innovation summit
Real estate brokerage and franchise giant Realogy Holdings Corp. has selected 15 emerging technology companies from about 100 that applied to compete for a $25,000 cash prize at the Realogy FWD Innovation Summit. The companies selected to present the...
Most @properties listings will feature interactive floor plans
Most @properties listings will feature interactive floor plans
Real estate brokerage @properties will use interactive floor plans and high-resolution photos to market listings online at no additional charge to sellers on all homes listed at $500,000 or more. The Chicago-based brokerage said it plans to extend th...
Tumblr acquisition may validate blogging site for business pros
Tumblr acquisition may validate blogging site for business pros
On its “10 a.m. Special” Tumblr page, The Corcoran Group showcases one jaw-dropping listing every day. The posts are bursting with a colorful mixture of new media that includes clickable photos and graphics, embedded videos and invitation...
Are maps obliterating your visual branding efforts?
Are maps obliterating your visual branding efforts?
Maps and real estate websites seem to go hand in hand. It only makes sense, I suppose. Everyone wants to know where the house is, what the neighborhood is like, how far it is from stuff, and so on. A ......
Seller financing: an untapped resource for real estate agents
Seller financing: an untapped resource for real estate agents
While the residential real estate market is generally believed to be improving nationwide, some of the residual effects of the Great Recession still affect the ability of real estate agents to facilitate home sales. Emerging employment opportunities ...
NAR to help members meet ‘Obamacare’ health care mandate
NAR to help members meet ‘Obamacare’ health care mandate
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act — “Obamacare” — mandates that all Americans have health insurance or pay a penalty starting next year. Recognizing that many Realtors, as independent contractors and small-busines...
Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate gains foothold in Idaho
Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate gains foothold in Idaho
Realogy Holdings Corp. franchisor Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate is expanding into Idaho with the addition of brokerage 43° North Real Estate to its franchise network. The Boise-based brokerage company is now doing business as Better Homes and...
Chattanooga Realtors launch new public-facing MLS site
Chattanooga Realtors launch new public-facing MLS site
The Greater Chattanooga Association of Realtors has launched a consumer-facing residential property search website with tools designed to help local Realtors in southeast Tennessee and northwest Georgia compete with national portals. GCAR’s ...
CRM vets back in the game with Kunversion
CRM vets back in the game with Kunversion
Lead generation and customer relationship management (CRM) platform Kunversion LLC has rolled out a new user dashboard that’s mobile-optimized, integrated with Google Apps, and interacts with leads via text, email and chat before a user has to ...
Commission Pitch now furnishing agent metrics to consumers
Commission Pitch now furnishing agent metrics to consumers
A Toronto-based startup is offering to help buyers and sellers in Ontario choose a real estate agent by furnishing metrics about agents’ prior transactions, including statistics on the number of homes sold, average days on market, average sales...
FHA policy shift leaves many condos ineligible for financing
FHA policy shift leaves many condos ineligible for financing
Is FHA intentionally targeting condominiums, trying to exclude hundreds or thousands of them around the country from qualifying for financing under its mortgage insurance program? FHA officials tell me absolutely not. But an abrupt new “no-toleranc...