General News - Real Estate, Updates, News & Tips

TIP: 4 Yard Updates that Boost Curb Appeal

The need for curb appeal continues to increase, especially as many local buyers hesitate to enter unfamiliar homes and distant buyers narrow their home-shopping lists from afar in the pandemic. A dismaying front yard may prompt them to move on, whether in person or on the internet.“You only get one chance to make a first impression, and it happens when a potential buyer sees the exterior of your home,” Kate Rumson, interior designer and Trane

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The Top Cities for Millennial Renters in 2020

Austin, Texas, has become the most sought-after city among millennial renters this year, according to a new study from RentCafe, a nationwide listing service for renters. Millennials have overtaken baby boomers as the largest generation in the U.S. to date. They also make up the majority of the workforce. So the real estate industry has always watched where they call home.RentCafe analyzed 13 million renter applications nationwide to identify the

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Benjamin Moore's 2021 Color of the Year - Aegean Teal

Paint firms are continuing to release a range of colors as their picks for the hottest hues of 2021. Benjamin Moore is the latest in announcing its choice: “Aegean Teal,” its top color pick for the new year.The blue-green midtone, with gray undertones, is “rooted in the elegant, hand-spun textures of the home,” Benjamin Moore says. The color evokes a sense of comfort, craft, nourishment, and inspiration, the paint company says.“Amid unc

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REALTORS: Morgan Stanley Launch Financial Program for REALTORS

The National Association of REALTORS® announced Friday that it has partnered with global financial services firm Morgan Stanley to offer investment guidance and other financial wellness resources to members. With only 52% of REALTORS® actively saving for retirement, according to NAR’s 2019 Financial Planning Report, the newly available financial planning and investment guidance—offered through NAR’s Center for REALTOR® Financial Wel

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Mortgage Rates Set Record Low for 10th Time

Mortgage rates fell slightly this week, setting a new record low for the 10th time this year, Freddie Mac reports. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 2.81%, the lowest rate since Freddie Mac began tracking such data in 1971. The previous all-time low, an average of 2.86%, was set in mid-September.“Low mortgage rates have become a regular occurrence in the current environment,” says Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. “As we h

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Inventory Uptick Signals More Confident Sellers

More homes are gradually coming onto the market in a hopeful sign that homeowners may finally be warming up to the idea of selling, according to data from realtor.com®’s latest Weekly Housing Report. An incremental uptick in available inventory is welcome news to home buyers struggling to find a property to purchase. Last week, homes sold a full two weeks faster than the same time period a year ago and were listed for an average of $38,000 mor

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Top Places to Retire in 2020

Florida dominates this year’s “Best Places to Retire in 2020” from U.S. News & World Report “in a way that we haven’t seen in years before,” says Emily Brandon, U.S. News & World Report’s senior editor for retirement.Brandon says Florida is drawing more retirees due to the state’s affordable homes, low taxes, and high ratings for happiness and desirability. Florida boasted seven of the top 10 places to retire in 2020 on U.

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Nearly 16 Million People have Moved during the Pandemic

The pandemic has sparked Americans to relocate in large numbers. From February through July, more than 15.9 million people filed change-of-address requests with the United States Postal Service.Twenty-eight percent of nearly 10,000 adults recently surveyed by the Pew Research Center said the most important reason they moved was to reduce their risk of contracting COVID-19. Another 23% said they moved because their college campus closed; 20%

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Interest in Vacation Homes Continues to Surge

The pandemic has made Americans more interested in buying a second home. Online search traffic for vacation homes has reached a five-year high, according to a recent analysis by Point2Homes.com. Searches for houses for sale in popular second-home spots such as Big Sky, Mont., and Fort Bragg, N.C., are up 177% and 143% year over year, respectively.Interest in second homes has more than doubled over 2019, according to Point2Homes.com. Google search

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Where Generation Z Home Shoppers want to Buy

Members of Generation Z—Americans born in the mid-'90s—are attending college, starting their careers, and now even entering homeownership for the first time. Gen Zers may barely make up 10% of the potential home buyers in some of the nation’s largest metros, but as more reach adulthood, housing analysts call them a generation to watch.LendingTree recently analyzed mortgage purchase requests made across the nation’s 50 largest metropolitan

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