Tag Archives: News Brief

Third of top HUD appointees have no housing policy experience

By Bryson Masse | September 21, 2018 - 5:31 pm |September 21, 2018 Uncategorized

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A slew of political appointees at HUD have been found to have no housing policy experience, but instead worked on campaigns for Donald Trump or Ben Carson. Continue reading →

Amazon unveils new Echo devices, Alexa microwave

By Veronika Bondarenko | September 20, 2018 - 11:24 pm |September 20, 2018 Uncategorized

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Your home may soon start hearing a whole lot more of Alexa — on Thursday, Amazon unveiled a range of new and updated smart home gadgets. Continue reading →

Mortgage rates rise for fourth week straight

By Veronika Bondarenko | September 20, 2018 - 4:29 pm |September 20, 2018 Uncategorized

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The 30-year-fixed mortgage rate averaged 4.65 percent this week, the highest since May, according to Freddie Mac’s most recent Primary Mortgage Market Survey. Continue reading →

Hamptons agent serenades buyers with original country song about $2M property

By Veronika Bondarenko | September 20, 2018 - 4:01 pm |September 20, 2018 Uncategorized

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Hamptons agent Telly Karoussos decided to liven up his property listing with a short video of himself singing the home’s praises. Continue reading →

Existing home sales remain steady, ending four-month slump

By Patrick Kearns | September 20, 2018 - 2:16 pm |September 20, 2018 Uncategorized

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Sales of existing homes remained steady from July to August, ending four months of decline, according to data from the National Association of Realtors. Continue reading →

Zillow to feature listings from Canada’s largest indie brokerage

By Veronika Bondarenko | September 20, 2018 - 1:50 pm |September 20, 2018 Uncategorized

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As part of its efforts to come to Canada, Zillow will soon feature listings from the country’s largest indie brokerage, Right At Home Realty. Continue reading →

Minnesota’s two largest multiple listing services are merging

By Andrea V. Brambila | September 20, 2018 - 1:06 am |September 20, 2018 Uncategorized

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NorthstarMLS is joining forces with Southeast Minnesota Realtors (SEMR) to offer lower combined fees to 88 percent of the state’s real estate pros Continue reading →

Blend wants to make applying for a mortgage suck less with AI

By Veronika Bondarenko | September 19, 2018 - 6:41 pm |September 19, 2018 Uncategorized

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The Peter Thiel-backed San Francisco-startup’s new product for lenders, Blend Intelligence, automatically requests documents from borrowers and runs health checks on them. Continue reading →

San Antonio Board of Realtors names new CEO after abruptly firing previous leader

By Veronika Bondarenko | September 19, 2018 - 5:38 pm |September 19, 2018 Uncategorized

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The San Antonio Board of Realtors has a new leader, having named Gilbert S. Gonzalez CEO two weeks after Shane Johnson got the boot. Continue reading →

Motto Mortgage Group adds franchise in Northwest U.S.

By Bryson Masse | September 19, 2018 - 4:29 pm |September 19, 2018 Uncategorized

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Motto Mortgage Group, a mortgage brokerage spun off from RE/MAX, is expanding to the Seattle metro area with a new office in Edmonds, WA. Continue reading →