Residential Real Estate
Your Home Sale Fell Through. Now What?
Once in a blue moon, a cancellation works out to the seller’s advantage. For the most part, though, sellers have no choice but to grin and bear it. The first step is to determine what went wrong.
America’s Biggest Flipper Calls It Quits
Sadly, taking advantage of other people’s misery and mistakes can be a highly profitable business. But it comes with big reputational risks – something that David Hicks found out the hard way.
Less Than 1 Percent of Boston Homes Have Changed Hands This Year
A new analysis of MLS data by economists at brokerage and listings portal Redfin gives shape to just how choked up Greater Boston’s housing market is right now.
Too Many Agents Spoil the Pot
A new report suggests unskilled and incompetent real estate agents drain 25 percent to 30 percent of commission income away from the better agents in each housing market on top of the other headaches they cause.
After Supreme Court Ruling, Weakest Hands Will Show Themselves
After the Supreme Court’s landmark affirmative action decision, eyes now turn to business leaders to see who will be the first to rein in their DEI. But when they do, their customers and employees will be watching.
Mortgage Rates Surged to Nearly 7 Percent This Week
Nonetheless, mortgage applications actually increased slightly from the prior week, driven by a rise in FHA and VA purchase applications.
Brokers, Agents Urged to Act After Commission Lawsuit Settlement
A major national real estate consultancy is urging brokers and listing agents to act quickly to update their policies and marketing materials following a settlement between a trio of Massachusetts home-sellers and MLS PIN in a class-action lawsuit over buyer-agent commissions.
Survey Hints Consumers ‘Coming to Terms’ with High Mortgage Rates
Fannie Mae’s monthly survey of consumer sentiment about the housing industry contains hints that consumers may finally be getting used to the seemingly-intractable combination of high interest rates and high home prices that’s choking residential real estate markets around the country.
Personnel File – No. 338
Who’s on the move? From new VPs to fresh project managers, see who’s been hired, promoted and honored: It’s The Personnel File.
Fast and Furious, Mortgage-Style
The ability of lenders to come up with creative new products that seize would-be borrowers’ attention is never-ending. Anything to get a customer in the door.
Banker & Tradesman’s Editorial Cartoon: Whose Student Loan Bill?
Get ready for your bills to increase.
MTF Sees Room for Agreement on Dueling Tax Relief Proposals
Lawmakers could combine virtually every tax relief measure proposed in divergent House and Senate bills and still keep the price tag close to the impact each branch’s budget-writers anticipated next year, a new report suggests.
Nantucket House Sets New Mass. Sale Record
A compound overlooking Nantucket Harbor has taken the crown as the most expensive residential property in Massachusetts history.
$3M Settlement Proposed in Class Action Suit Against MLS PIN
A settlement in a class action lawsuit against Massachusetts’ main residential real estate listings service has been proposed, leaving it off the hook as plaintiffs continue their battle against several large, national brokerages.
Sellers, Buyers Have It Wrong on Renovations
Most would-be homebuyers want to move into a house that’s pristine. Most sellers? “Eh, let ‘em fix the place up after they move in.” But each approach is a bit wrongheaded.
Spring Selling Season Is Over. Here’s What Agents Learned
From a rise in “whisper listing” and buyers’ ability to demand home inspections to seasonal patterns that just aren’t what they used to be, lots of things have changed.
A Huge Opportunity Is Coming to Boston
It’s sometimes hard for us, residents of the Hub of the Universe, to imagine but our fair city doesn’t necessarily have the best reputation in other parts of the country. But we can all pitch in to help change that narrative when the NAACP’s annual national convention comes to the Boston July 26.
Biz Leader Urges DEI ‘Recommittment’ in Wake of Court’s Ruling
The U.S. Supreme Court may have only struck down colleges’ and universities ability to use affirmative action to make sure their student bodies are more diverse, but the head of the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce is warning that the ruling could threaten local companies’ efforts to diversify their workforces.
Pandemic Dramatically Boosted Mass. Minority Homebuying
A new analysis of Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data shows the low interest rates homebuyers enjoyed in 2020 and 2021 had an outsized impact on efforts to close the racial home ownership gap in Massachusetts.
Homebuilders Project Higher Costs for Net Zero Construction
New Massachusetts decarbonization regulations will drive up costs of single-family homes by nearly $23,000, according to the findings of an industry study.
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