CFPB nominee McKernan commits to protecting older Americans from financial abuse

In a Senate Banking Committee hearing on Thursday to assess the nominations of four people poised to take on leadership roles in the Trump administration, most of the questions that senators raised were focused on one person.Jonathan McKernan, who is President Donald Trump’s nominee to succeed Rohit

These are the functions of the HUD offices targeted for mass firings

The White House and key leaders aimed at cost-cutting inside the federal government have reportedly trained their eyes on the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and that reporting suggests it is culminating in a series of cuts that could include as much as 50% of the department’

Optionality of NAR’s no-commingling rule takes center stage at REX appeal hearing

The appeal of REX Real Estate’s antitrust suit against the National Association of Realtors (NAR) and Zillow began in earnest on Thursday when the three parties, along with the Department of Justice (DOJ), gathered at the Ninth District Court of Appeals in Honolulu for oral arguments before a three-

The ‘silver tsunami’ could slam into California’s economy

Older residents of the state of California, meaning those aged 65 or older, made up roughly 14% of the state’s population in 2020. That figure is poised to rise to 22% by 2040, marking a 59% increase, while the number of residents between the ages of 20-64 is projected to remain largely unchanged du

Homebuilders conflicted on 2025 apartment construction outlook

The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) released its Multifamily Market Survey that covers results from the fourth quarter of 2024. The survey also highlighted mixed sentiment among homebuilders in terms of multifamily construction this year.The organization redesigned the survey to align w

HUD to cut 50% of its workforce in latest Trump purge

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is the latest housing agency to be targeted by the Trump administration’s cost-cutting efforts. On Thursday night, Bloomberg Law reported that HUD’s union president told the publication that HUD plans to “discharge 50% of its workforce.”“Ant

As White House scrutinizes HUD programs, union leaders offer a waste target

The White House has reportedly solicited information from staff at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to justify the existence of various contracts. According to reporting by NPR, a spreadsheet was sent to employees, asking them to assess the importance of contracts, whether

Executive shakeups continue at Douglas Elliman

The C-suite shakeups at Douglas Elliman are still going. Last week, an internal memo informed Douglas Elliman agents and employees that Stephen Kotler was stepping down as the CEO of the brokerage’s western region, as first reported by The Real Deal. Kotler will remain at the firm, joining his son M

Housing supply hits five-year high, but buyers aren’t playing ball

Nationwide housing inventory showed a glimmer of recovery toward the end of 2024. But these new listings aren’t attracting buyers, and pending home sales dropped 4.2% month over month in January.That finding comes from two Redfin reports released on Thursday. Each tell similar stories, albeit from d

Could government funding scrutiny come for reverse mortgage programs?

Housing leaders are naturally interested in knowing how recent cost-cutting efforts by the federal government could be focused upon the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and its wide array of programs, including reverse mortgages.In the first Trump administration, housing offici

Legal experts weigh in on the CFPB and the future of regulation

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) may have yet another new director in Jonathan McKernan, but the bureau is still effectively shut down thanks to actions taken by McKernan’s two most recent predecessors, Scott Bessent and Russell Vought, who both served as acting director. While enforc

One in 10 ‘gray divorce’ couples finance split with housing wealth

New data from U.K.-based financial services firm Legal & General shows that as many as 11% of all couples over the age of 50 use their real estate wealth — either through the proceeds of a home sale or a home equity release product — to finance the costs of divorce.“The research, which explored the

Julie Kheyfets on home renovation trends: Demand is approaching 2022 levels

In this week’s episode of the Top of Mind podcast, host Mike Simonsen is joined by Block Renovation CEO Julie Kheyfets. The duo explore current and upcoming trends in the home renovation market.This interview has been edited for length and clarity. To start the conversation, Simonsen and Kheyfets di

What’s the fuss over Realtor-owned MLSs opening the door to all agents?

In some states, the door has been open for many years to real estate agents who want to access their local MLS without being a Realtor. But controversy has been rising of late after actions by associations in Phoenix and Austin. (Image generated by AI through Midjourney)In 1994, the National Associa

Will higher inflation and mortgage rates create a recession?

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) came in with inflation higher than expected today, particularly in the month-to-month data, which caused the 10-year yield to spike sharply within seconds after the report. This is what I discussed on today’s episode of the HousingWire Daily podcast — that there are ri

Rising inflation deals blow to potential interest rate cuts

The housing market is starved for relief on mortgage rates, but hope for the Federal Reserve cutting interest rates just took a huge blow.The reading of the consumer price index (CPI) from the Bureau of Labor Statistics came in unexpectedly high, showing a 3% rise for the 12-month period ending in J

Zillow is still in the red, but its major revenue streams are rising

Rental listings have been a consistent high-growth revenue stream for Zillow since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. And the company has struck a deal that it believes can push that growth even higher.On its fourth-quarter 2024 earnings call on Tuesday evening, Zillow announced a partnersh

Sherry Chris urges brokers to stick with NAR in 2025

In this week’s episode of the Power House podcast, host Diego Sanchez sits down with a close observer from within the National Association of Realtors (NAR). Sherry Chris, special advisor to NAR CEO Nykia Wright, joins the show to discuss the trade association’s response to post-settlement changes a

Proprietary reverse mortgage business in Oregon could be in danger

A bill introduced into the Oregon Senate that seeks to limit the amount of equity a reverse mortgage lender can receive after the sale or transfer of a property could potentially halt the availability of proprietary product offerings in the state.This is according to a version of the bill reviewed b

Crye-Leike wants to be covered by NAR’s settlement, but rankings data says otherwise

In 2022, Crye-Leike Real Estate Services closed roughly $7 billion in sales volume, according to data from the 2023 RealTrends Verified rankings. The T3 Sixty Real Estate Almanac reports the same numbers, while the brokerage company’s 2022 Annual Report pegged its sales volume at $8.5 billion. But n