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There’s a trend taking hold in real estate right now: more buyers are choosing newly built homes. And it’s not just about getting the latest technology or modern floorplans. It’s because they may be able to get a better deal. Builders are offering serious incentives today, and people are jumping on them.In fact,new home sales just hit their highest level in over two years (see graph below): Why Builders Are Throwing in Perks There are Read more…

You want mortgage rates to fall – and they’ve started to. But is it going to last? And how low will they go? Experts say there’s room for rates to come down even more over the next year. And one of the leading indicators to watch is the 10-year treasury yield. Here’s why. The Link Between Mortgage Rates and the 10-Year Treasury Yield For over 50 years, the 30-year fixed mortgage rate has closely followed Read more…

If you’re planning to buy a home this year, there’s one expense you can’t afford to overlook: closing costs. Almost every buyer knows they exist, but not that many know exactly what they cover, or how different they can be based on where you’re buying. So, let’s break them down. What Are Closing Costs? Your closing costs are the additional fees and payments you make when finalizing your home purchase. Every buyer has them. According Read more…

For the past couple of years, it’s been tough for a lot of homebuyers to make the numbers work. Home prices shot up. Mortgage rates too. And a number of people hit pause because it just didn’t feel possible. Maybe you were one of them. But there’s some encouraging news. If you’ve been waiting for a better time to jump back in, affordability may finally be showing signs of improvement this fall. The latest data Read more…

The Federal Reserve (the Fed) meets this week, and expectations are high that they’ll cut the Federal Funds Rate. But does that mean mortgage rates will drop? Let’s clear up the confusion. The Fed Doesn’t Directly Set Mortgage Rates Right now, all eyes are on the Fed. Most economists expect they’ll cut the Federal Funds Rate at their mid-September meeting to try to head off a potential recession. According to the CME FedWatch Tool, markets Read more…

If your selling strategy still assumes you’ll get multiple offers over asking, it’s officially time for a reset. That frenzied seller’s market is behind us. And here are the numbers to prove it.  From Frenzy to “Normal” Right now, about 50% of homes on the market are selling for less than their asking price, according to the latest data from Cotality. But that isn’t necessarily bad news, even if it feels like it. Here’s why. Read more…

If you’re still worried about having to deal with a bidding war when you buy a home, you may be able to let some of that fear go. While multiple-offer situations haven’t disappeared entirely, they’re not nearly as common as they used to be. In fact, a recent survey shows agents reported only 1 in 5 homes (20%) nationally received multiple offers in June 2025. That’s down from nearly 1 in 3 (31%) just a Read more…

Believe it or not, there are clear signs buyer interest is heating up again. Let’s talk about what’s really going on behind the scenes, and why the housing market might not be as quiet out there as it seems.  Buyers Are Looking, and Search Trends Prove It One of the clearest ways to measure what people are thinking about is to look at what they’re searching for online. And according to Google Trends, searches for Read more…

Buying a home is exciting… until you start thinking about the down payment. That’s when the worry can set in. “I’ll never save enough.” “I need a small fortune just to get started.” “I guess I’ll just rent forever.” Sound familiar? You’re not alone. And you’re definitely not out of luck. Here’s the thing: a lot of what you’ve heard about down payments just isn’t true. And once you know the facts, you might realize Read more…

Depending on where you live, the housing market could feel red-hot or strangely quiet right now. The truth is, local markets are starting to move in different directions. In some places, buyers are calling the shots. In others, sellers still hold the power. It’s a tale of two markets. What’s a Buyer’s Market vs. a Seller’s Market? In a buyer’s market, there are more homes for sale and not as many buyers. That means homes Read more…