By Erica Plemmons Florida Realtors economist: Knock it out of the park through 2025. What can you do now to prepare for the buyers and sellers entering the market? Utilize digital tools, understand smart home features and attract remote workers to your market. ORLANDO, Fla. – Experts predict technological advancements, the continuance of remote work, and a shift in commercial real estate will be the “new normal” in 2025, according to a recent canvassing completed by the Pew Research Center and Elon’s Imagining the Internet Center. Using their database, Pew/Elon selected specialists from a range of fields and sectors, such
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The uptick in interest rates increased buyer activism heading into the spring buying season, which probably won’t be a “season” since the market never slowed in 2020. NEW YORK – The spring homebuying market is typically marked by higher sales and a greater number of house hunters, but many real estate professionals feel a spring-like market has been in full swing since the pandemic began a year ago. “There will be no spring homebuying season in 2021, as we’ve been in it the entire time,” says Bob Bradley, a real estate professional in Orange, Calif. “Major markets haven’t had the
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By Kerry Smith After April 1, Fannie and Freddie will buy fewer second-home mortgages. That increases lenders’ risks and will likely translate into higher fees and/or interest rates. WASHINGTON – A rule change for the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) will likely make it more expensive to take out a second-home loan or get a mortgage for other types of investment property. The rule goes into effect on April 1. The National Association of Realtors® (NAR) has been actively trying to maintain the current level of second-home financing offered by FHFA. On January 15, NAR responded to the change with
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By Kerry Smith National flood insurance will undergo a seismic change for homebuyers on Oct. 1, 2021, and for existing homeowners on April 1, 2022. Under “Risk Rating 2.0,” policy rates will be individualized based on a specific home rather than a general blanket rate based on flood zones. WASHINGTON – The Congressional Research Service released an updated analysis of the National Flood Insurance (NFIP) program slated to go into effect on Oct. 1, 2021, for new homeowners and starting on April 1, 2022, for existing homeowners. The report, National Flood Insurance Program: The Current Rating Structure and Risk Rating
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By Jim Saunders Will Fla.-owned Citizens Insurance rates go up an average 7.3%? Fla. regulators questioned Citizens officials Monday and are analyzing the request. TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Florida regulators on Monday dug into a proposal to raise rates for customers of Citizens Property Insurance Corp., with the state-backed insurer saying its policy counts – and financial risks – are increasing because of problems in the private insurance market. Citizens is seeking an overall rate increase of 7.3%, though hikes would vary widely based on factors such as types of policies and locations. Regulators held a more than three-hour hearing Monday
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By Kim Hays Cast a vote every day this week to help one of our own become the 2021 Web Choice Award winner to be featured in the May/June issue of NAR’s REALTOR Magazine. Each May/June,  the National Association of Realtors’ REALTOR Magazine features 30 young rising stars in the real estate industry, and this year four Realtors from Florida who’ve demonstrated skill, success, creativity and leadership are in the running. Members of the public can help one of these finalists make it into the 30 Under 30 class of 2021. Online voting in the Web Choice Award contest is open now and closes at noon Friday.
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There are too many variables to make accurate predictions. How high will mortgage rates go? Will inflation return? Are homes overpriced – will buyers even care if so? WASHINGTON – According to the National Association of Realtors® (NAR), home sales plunged nearly 18% from March to April 2020 and another 10% from April to May. And then existing-home sales shot back up nearly 21% in June 2020. The market can be dramatic, and unique variables associated with the end of a pandemic aren’t common territory. As a result, the best real estate experts can offer diverse forecasts for the future.
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By Kerry Smith Study: Redlined neighborhoods – metro areas once relegated to Blacks or other minorities – are less appealing geographically than nearby white neighborhoods. But Fla. is the exception, where a home’s desirability is often based on proximity to the beach – an obviously high-risk flood area. SEATTLE – Americans living in formerly redlined neighborhoods  – metro areas once legally relegated to Blacks or other minorities – are more likely today to see their homes jeopardized by water damage than people living in non-redlined (greenlined) neighborhoods, according to a report from Redfin. But Florida bucks that trend, mainly because
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By Catherine Mesick Pent-up demand, consumer savings and widespread vaccinations will spark broad commercial expansion this year, according to economists attending NAR’s Wed. webinar. CHICAGO – As vaccination rates rise nationwide, commercial real estate is likely to post gains across all sectors, fueled by pent-up demand and a high level of consumer savings, said leading economists on Wednesday during the National Association of Realtors® ‘(NAR) virtual “Real Estate Forecast Summit: Commercial Update” webinar. The U.S. economy will continue to improve in 2021, said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun, and that improvement is likely to drive gains across most commercial real
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Many Americans will get a $1,400 stimulus check, unemployment at $300 per week runs to Sept. 6, and landlords can now tap into a bigger pot of money. Plus child tax credits – $300-or-more paid weekly – could be enough for some rental families to decide it’s time to buy a home. WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden signed the $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package – known as the American Rescue Plan – into law on Thursday after the U.S. House of Representatives approved the final version of the measure Wednesday. The National Association of Realtors® (NAR) says the legislation contains
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