Beazer refinancing raises Dream Finders deal cost by $53 million

For weeks, a central question surrounding Dream Finders Homes‘ pursuit of Beazer Homes has been unambiguous: Will Dream Finders’ offer for the company and its public relations campaign be enough to convince Beazer shareholders that a sale should occur? A just-completed debt refinancing by Beazer Hom

With Warsh’s Fed overhaul, mortgage rates face a new risk

Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh’s new framework for the U.S. central bank carries significant implications for the mortgage industry and broader housing market — a sector that he admits is already facing a restrictive monetary stance. While his hawkish tone points to higher-for-longer mortgage rat

HUD aims to help multi-story manufactured housing go vertical

For decades, manufactured housing has excelled at producing lower-cost homes. What it has struggled to do is go vertical. Fact is, America’s most severe housing shortages are no longer in places where inexpensive land is abundant. They’re in high-cost metropolitan markets where making housing pencil

Intent beats volume: What real estate teams are learning from AI-powered follow-up

Real estate has always had a complicated relationship with lead follow-up. Everyone knows speed matters. Everyone knows consistency matters. And almost every team believes there is missed opportunity sitting somewhere inside its database, even if they’re using real estate AI follow up. The common re

The next test for master-planned communities is staying power

Master-planned communities are gaining renewed relevance as buyers seek a sense of predictability in an uncertain housing market. Even as the broader housing market continues to wrestle with affordability pressure, interest rate sensitivity and uneven buyer demand, many master-planned communities ha

How Higharc is turning floor plans into intelligent data

The housing industry has spent the last several years trying to understand what artificial intelligence means for builders. Most of the conversation has focused on generative AI and large language models, but a new category of AI is emerging for homebuilding operations: spatial AI. Unlike traditiona

Taylor Morrison names Mike Carlo Sarasota division president

Taylor Morrison, the sixth-largest builder in the HousingWire Homebuilder Rankings, has appointed Mike Carlo as president of its Sarasota division.  Carlo brings more than 25 years of homebuilding experience to the role. “Mike is a proven leader with an impressive track record of operational excelle

What to look for in Kevin Warsh’s first Fed meeting

Today, as I write this article, oil prices are at $75.80, which is a big deal because tomorrow the Federal Reserve will announce its monetary policy under new Fed Chair Kevin Warsh. For many months, Federal Reserve hawks have said that the Iran conflict was a major reason they’ve been more hawkish,

Builders slow starts in May to rebalance pricing and incentives

The real story in today’s Monthly New Residential Construction release from the Census Bureau isn’t a collapse in construction. It’s a production strategy that took shape months ago. Headlines – and their sibling, “headline risk” –don’t enjoy a particularly good reputation among most homebuilding bu

FHFA pushes for direct power to sue for mortgage fraud 

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) and Director Bill Pulte are asking Congress for the power to bring civil lawsuits against individuals suspected of mortgage fraud. In its newest Annual Report to Congress, released Monday, the FHFA recommended new authority to directly sue for mortgage marke

CoStar amicus brief denied in Zillow MRED Compass case

CoStar’s attempt to enter the ongoing legal battle among Zillow, Midwest Real Estate Data (MRED) and Compass International Holdings has been denied.  In a ruling on Tuesday, Illinois-based federal judge John Tharp denied CoStar’s motion to file an amicus curiae brief. No reason for the judge’s denia

Social Security funding gap widens in 2026 trustees report

Social Security’s long-term financial outlook deteriorated significantly in the latest annual report from the program’s trustees, with officials projecting a larger funding shortfall and an earlier depletion date for the retirement trust fund. The 2026 Trustees Report estimates Social Security‘s 75-

When will home sales finally return to normal?

The real estate industry is still reeling from four years of desperately slow home sales. The transaction is the unit upon which everyone gets paid. Whether sale commission, mortgage origination, insurance, movers, appliances or furniture — everything happens when the house is bought. Four years aft

Project NexusRE adds governance layer for MLS data and AI use

NorthstarMLS and REcore Solutions, along with the WAV Group’s Fluente AI team have unveiled Project NexusRE, a patent-pending infrastructure layer intended to give multiple listing services (MLS) and brokers more visibility and control over how listing data is accessed, used and monetized by artific

The financing gap that keeps starter homes out of reach

I launched a condo conversion community recently. Units priced between $90,000 and $140,000. Sold six in the first week. Five of the six were seller-financed. Not because the buyers preferred it. Because conventional lenders couldn’t touch them. FHA couldn’t touch them. These were people with real i

What mortgage professionals need to know about reverse mortgages

As America’s population ages, a growing number of homeowners are entering retirement with substantial housing wealth and new questions about how to use it. For mortgage professionals, that shift is creating opportunities to have broader conversations about housing wealth, cash flow and long-term fin

Fresh off seed round, BrokerBot eyes next phase of brokerage automation

For many real estate brokers, the daily barrage of agent questions — “Where’s the W-9?,” or, “What’s our commission split again?” — adds up to dozens of hours each month, often interrupting nights and weekends. BrokerBot, the artificial intelligence (AI) teammate platform built by Ribera AI, Inc. an

Why more private homebuilders face a succession test now

A succession challenge homebuilding can no longer ignore A second U.S. President in a row to serve past the age of 80 is in the Oval Office. Whether spoken or not, succession, or rather a sound strategic, operational and organizational cultural plan for it, is on the minds of many.  It’s the same in

Zillow investor sues over Redfin rental syndication deal

Zillow is facing yet another lawsuit related to its multifamily rental syndication deal with Redfin, first announced in February 2025. The listing portal giant is already facing a legal challenge from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and attorneys general in five states, who are claiming that the

Saluda Grade brushes off macro concerns to bet on home equity resilience

Alternative investment firm Saluda Grade doesn’t see the interest rate environment or the current signals of consumer financial stress taking the shine off home equity assets anytime soon. “What we’re focused on is 75% of homeowners today with a mortgage have a rate that is still out of the money —