General

SAN DIEGO (November 12, 2015) – This evening, Federal Housing Administration Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Ed Golding joined National Association of Realtors® President Chris Polychron on stage before a packed ballroom of Realtors® and industry experts to announce changes to FHA condominium policies.

NAR has long advocated for broad improvements to FHA’s condo rules, arguing that existing policy is overly restrictive and keeps many consumers… Read More

SAN DIEGO (November 13, 2015) – Housing prices have roared back and confidence in the marketplace has followed; at the same time, job growth is allowing more buyers to enter the market and rising home equity is giving homeowners the confidence to sell. With this optimism, real estate markets may have finally transitioned from recovery to stabilization, according to 2016 National Association of… Read More

WASHINGTON (November 13, 2015) — While commercial real estate has been steadily recovering in recent years, industry experts expressed concern that prices may have reached a peak during the Commercial Economic Issues and Trends Forum at the 2015 REALTORS® Conference & Expo.

Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said the fundamentals of the commercial real estate market have been gradually improving and this has led to prices rising to new peaks.

“… Read More Continue Reading →

San Diego (November 13, 2015) — Months of preparation and training paid off for Realtors® as the implementation of new closing documents known as the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act and Truth in Lending Act Integrated Disclosure enters its second month with minimal delays.

That’s according to panelists at the “RESPA-TILA Know Before You Owe Rule: Regulatory Issues Forum” during the 2015 REALTORS® Conference & Expo, happening this week in San Diego.

On October 3, 2015, the TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosure Rule took ...

SAN DIEGO (November 13, 2015) – Following the housing market’s best year since the recession, existing-home sales are expected to increase in 2016 at a moderate pace; although affordability pressures from inventory shortages and rising mortgage rates could slow the potential for even stronger sales momentum, according to an economic forecast forum here at the 2015 REALTORS® Conference & Expo.

Lawrence Yun, chief economist of the National Association of… Read More Continue Reading →

SAN DIEGO (November 14, 2015) – Throughout 2015, the National Association of Realtors® has enhanced and expanded upon its more than a decade old Realtor® Safety program, developing new materials, creating additional resources and providing members with everything they need to feel empowered and confident in their personal safety.

“When I became NAR president, I pledged to make Realtors®’ safety a top priority,” said NAR President Chris Polychron, executive broker with 1^st Choice… Read More Continue Reading →

SAN DIEGO (November 14, 2015) – Small real estate businesses, agents and their clients are fast becoming the targets of sophisticated cyber scammers. That’s according to panelists at the Risk Management and License Law Forum yesterday at the 2015 REALTORS® Conference & Expo, who discussed potential threats and offered tips for agents to protect themselves and their businesses and clients from cyber-attacks.           

Melanie Wyne, National Association… Read More

SAN DIEGO (November 14, 2015) – The wave of new millennial homebuyers is just beginning, and Realtors® should prepare themselves now by adapting to buyers’ housing preferences, use of technology and demand for environmentally friendly features. That’s according to speakers at a buyer preferences forum organized by the REALTOR® University Richard J. Rosenthal Center for Real Estate Studies here at the 2015… Read More

SAN DIEGO (November 14, 2015) –  Realtors® shared strategies for assessing and conveying the value green features bring to homes during the Real Property Valuation Forum today at the 2015 REALTORS® Conference & Expo.

During the forum, panelists focused on the importance of appraisers and listing and buyers agents not only educating themselves on the issues surrounding environmentally friendly and high-performance home features, but on how to market and emphasize those features to… Read More Continue Reading →

SAN DIEGO (November 15, 2015) – Delivering meaningful information to consumers quickly and in a conversational way will help Realtors® position themselves as credible real estate experts and ultimately lead to more business, according to a digital technology and lead generation forum here at the 2015 REALTORS® Conference & Expo.

Celeste Starchild, vice president of Move and general manager at ListHub, shared business intelligence about how consumers are increasingly using online and digital technology during the home… Read ...