The big premise of the commission lawsuit against the national association of realtors is that high commission fees were one of the leading drivers of real estate prices. How true is this statement? Will the new commission structure for realtors…
Big changes to how real estate has been bought and sold are scheduled for July. Why is this settlement the most groundbreaking change in real estate since the internet. What is in the most recent settlement? How will home buyers…
It is crazy how far technologically we have come, but at the same time how fragile our infrastructure is. On of the largest cities in Atlanta (Fulton County) recently had a cyber “incident” which shut down the city and…
Anytime you turn on the news you hear about high house prices and that the culprit is that supply has not kept up with demand. Is supply really the main culprit of housing prices or did something else that…
It is interesting that the market continues to focus on interest rates and employment as the barometer for the economy while totally ignoring one metric. As a lender I just did a year end analysis on our portfolio and…
US commercial real estate prices have fallen this year for the first time in more than a decade, according to Moody’s Analytics, heightening the risk of more financial stress in the banking industry. What property types are declining? (hint not…
Earlier in the year most economists and myself predicted a recession by now, but the cards have changed with most now predicting the opposite, a soft landing. What is a soft landing? Is a soft or hard landing better for…
For years interest rates were the number one indicator for real estate prices. In this cycle interest rates have more than doubled yet real estate prices have barely budged. If we look back at 2008, the impetus for the large…
Like most, I have been surprised at the recent upward movement in prices. Did we just experience the shortest housing cycle ever? Are housing prices going to continue their recent upward swing? Why are housing prices now moving higher after…
Both the stock and bond markets are partying like its 99 again. Fannie Mae, the largest buyer of US mortgages, is not buying into the theory that a soft landing is the base case for the economy. What is Fannie…