Lower mortgage rates at the end of 2025 prompted a refinance rush among current homeowners, helping boost prepayment rates to their highest level in three years, according to a new report from ICE Mortgage Technology. The monthly mortgage prepayment rate rose to 0.91% in December, just below the 3.5‑year high set in October, ICE reported…
President Donald Trump has floated several controversial ideas to help make housing affordable again. But his latest pitch—allowing Americans to tap 401(k) plans and 529 education savings accounts without penalties to fund their down payments—could have lasting financial consequences even if it helps with some upfront homeownership costs. According to a report from Politico, the…
Americans from all walks of life are feeling heightened anxiety about their finances — and that could dampen the housing market’s recovery, according to a new survey from Bright MLS. The survey of more than 3,300 adults found that a majority of Americans are worried about money across the board. However, this concern is felt…
Households headed by immigrants have accounted for roughly three-quarters of housing demand growth since 2010, but a new Harvard analysis suggests that trend may be ending—with significant implications for housing markets across the country. The Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University (JCHS) released revised projections forecasting 1.7 million fewer households in the U.S.…
Federal Reserve Governor Stephen Miran said Monday that he expects a rapid decline in housing-related inflation despite higher costs for other items. He also suggested interest rate cuts may be warranted even as overall inflation remains above the Fed’s 2% target. In his speech at Columbia University, Miran noted that current shelter inflation readings reflect…
American homebuyers are about to see their borrowing costs rise as credit scoring company FICO hikes the fees it charges to pull credit scores and reports for home loan applications. Mortgage lenders are reporting price increases of up to 50% for 2026 for credit score pulls, the fourth consecutive year of price jumps for the…
AI has entered the real estate chat—and it doesn’t appear to be going anywhere anytime soon. While some say the AI bubble may burst in the next year or two, that’s not the feeling you get perusing real estate tradeshow exhibit halls where vendors pitch AI solutions for just about everything. Whether it’s the promise…
Just in time for Halloween, America’s real estate market gets some unscary news: The zombies are going to their graves. So-called “zombie” foreclosures—homes abandoned by owners before formal foreclosure proceedings are completed—fell to 3.25% at the start of the fourth quarter of 2025, down from 3.38% from the previous quarter, according to ATTOM’s fourth-quarter Vacant…
When people hear about luxury housing, glitzy cities like New York, Miami and Los Angeles usually come to mind. But that narrative is being flipped upside down with Detroit hustling its way to the top of the Fall 2025 Wall Street Journal/Realtor.com® Luxury Housing Market Ranking, released last Thursday. Motor City knocked St. Louis from…
A protracted legal battle over whether real estate professionals can create and share floor plans when marketing homes finally ended Monday after the Supreme Court declined to revisit an appellate court’s decision allowing the practice. The high court’s refusal to hear the case reconfirms the January ruling from the Eighth U.S. District Court of Appeals…
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