Houlihan Lawrence adds 3 RealTrends-ranked agents in NYC push

Houlihan Lawrence is strengthening its presence in Yonkers, New York, with the addition of eight new agents, according to an announcement on Tuesday. Among these additions is the Vision Alliance Team, led by Rahhim and Tara Shillingford. Rahhim Shillingford is the former principal broker of Vision A

Georgia lawmakers revive push for LIHTC property tax protection

Georgia affordable housing developers revived an effort to amend the state constitution to shield their properties from steep property tax hikes. State Rep. Shaw Blackmon, chairman of the House Ways & Means Committee, and State Rep. Rob Leverett officially introduced a constitutional amendment on Mo

Real Brokerage adds RealTrends Verified Haley Garcia team in The Woodlands

The Real Brokerage is strengthening its presence in the luxury housing market of The Woodlands, Texas. The firm announced Tuesday that Haley Garcia and her five agent team Garcia Real Estate Group are making the move to Real after leaving Keller Williams Realty – The Woodlands.  The team will be joi

UHG goes private: Daiwa House’s Stanley Martin strikes $221M deal

In the two-thousand-mid-teens, you would not have needed a crystal ball to predict that three Japan-based vertically integrated real estate powerhouses would each rank among the nation’s top 15 enterprises. That’s because each of those three organizations – Daiwa House, Sekisui House and Sumitomo Fo

C2 Financial pushes for nationwide growth, top broker ranking

Leadership at C2 Financial is looking to reclaim a top wholesale ranking by strengthening its infrastructure, leveraging artificial intelligence, recruiting and mentoring the next generation of loan officers, and expanding from 42 states to nationwide coverage. In 2021, C2 was ranked No. 1 on Inman’

The hidden housing cost Washington can’t ignore: real estate fraud

Housing affordability is usually framed through numbers: mortgage rates, housing supply, construction costs and zoning restrictions. Washington debates the numbers, and families feel the squeeze. But there is another housing cost hiding in plain sight—real estate fraud. With Congress working on bipa

Fix-and-flip investor sentiment climbs even as 2025 activity declines

Investor sentiment in the fix-and-flip housing market improved at the end of 2025, even as overall transaction volume fell to its lowest level in a decade. That’s according to a recent survey conducted by Kiavi and John Burns Research & Consulting. In the fourth quarter of 2025, the Burns + Kiavi Fi

Spreads play the superhero as mortgage rates move below 6% again

After a weekend of crazy headlines and a stock sell-off on Monday morning, bond yields are close to hitting 4% again, but mortgage rates are back under 6% once again, which is the multiyear low in recent history. The biggest reason rates are under 6% isn’t just that the 2025 labor market produced th

VoicePilot lets CAR members draft forms by voice

The California Association of Realtors (CAR) is teaming up with Ethica AI to provide members with access to VoicePilot through CAR’s subsidiary Real Estate Business Services (REBS), according to an announcement on Monday.  Ethica AI describes VoicePilot as an AI driven voice and workflow platform th

Where does HUD’s potential reverse mortgage revamp stand?

Nearly two months after three federal housing agencies wrapped up an extended public comment period about the future of two federal reverse mortgage programs, industry stakeholders are waiting to learn what they’ll do next. In October, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the

Compass launches referral program for listing agents’ buyer leads

Compass, the brokerage owned by Compass International Holdings, has launched a new program it says will help agents generate passive income while retaining control over how they manage their business. On Friday, the brokerage launched its Listing Agent Lead and Referral Program.  Under this program,

City Lending to shut down amid regulatory strain, market consolidation

Virginia-based mortgage lender City Lending Inc. is winding down operations as regulatory burdens and ongoing industry consolidation weigh on independent mortgage banks, according to founder and CEO Jorge Campodonico. The lender originated approximately $232 million in mortgages over the past 12 mon

Single credit bureau pulls: Look before you leap

The conversation around credit reports in mortgage lending has taken a recent turn. Faced with spiraling mortgage origination costs and continued affordability challenges for homebuyers, policymakers and industry leaders understandably are searching for ways to reduce friction and cut costs in the m

Weekly pending home sales back to year-over-year growth as we head into spring

Weekly pending home sales, which had shown year-over-year growth up until the late-January snowstorm, got back on track with year-over-year growth again last week. One thing to remember about our weekly pending sales data: it takes about 30-60 days to be reflected in the existing home sales data, so

Zillow seeks dismissal of consolidated RESPA lawsuit in Seattle

Zillow is seeking to have the consolidated Taylor-Armstrong Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) lawsuit dismissed.  The real estate giant filed its motion to dismiss in U.S. District Court in Seattle on Friday. The lawsuit, which was consolidated in early December, began in mid-September,

January “green shoots” won’t tell homebuilders what July will

If you walked the aisles at this year’s International Builders Show, you could feel it. The vibe wasn’t panic. It wasn’t euphoria. It was something in between – a cautious optimism that maybe, just maybe, the worst is behind us. Traffic anecdotes sounded a little better. Some builders spoke about st

Trade groups push for lower MSR capital charges, tailored mortgage risk weights

Eight trade groups representing lenders are urging federal regulators to revise bank capital rules by adopting a more tailored risk weight for mortgages held on balance sheets and by significantly cutting the capital charge applied to mortgage servicing rights (MSRs). In a letter sent Friday to the

Opendoor posts $1.3B loss in 2025 but sees path to profitability

Opendoor may have lost $1.3 billion in 2025, but company executives say the iBuyer is back on track to becoming a profitable business.  On an earnings call with investors and analysts Thursday evening, Opendoor CEO Kaz Nejatian called his company’s fourth quarter and full-year 2025 earnings “good.”

New home sales still at multiyear highs

With all the housing drama lately going on, one truth has stayed constant for years: new home sales are holding up due to rate buy-downs, but housing permits are still at recession levels! What gives here? First and foremost, new home sales have outperformed the existing home sales market for many y

2025 new-home sales inched up; concessions weakened prices

A delayed December new-home sales release showed a slight increase in 2025 over a year earlier, but median new-home sales prices decreased, reflecting a challenging homebuilding market weighed down by cost reductions, elevated incentives and a slower-than-expected sales pace.  “New home sales ended