Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell played the Grinch last week for the housing market, sending mortgage rates higher after his remarks at the Fed presser on Wednesday. Despite this, we had positive data on existing home sales, purchase applications, and our weekly pending contract figures. Total

Relatively cheap housing, low taxes, looser COVID-19 restrictions and an influx of major employers turned Texas housing markets into hotspots after the pandemic began in March 2020. There weren’t many metro areas that rivaled the boom in Austin. The emerging technology sector brought wealth from the

Ready to begin a flexible, fulfilling real estate career in the Sunshine State? You should know that Florida requires 63 hours of prelicensing coursework at an approved school before you can sit the Florida state exam to get licensed. Our list of top Florida real estate schools has a feature-rich co

After more than five years of back and forth, Anywhere and the plaintiffs in the Bumpus Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) suit have finally reached a proposed settlement.According to a notice filed last week and entered into the court docket on Thursday, the parties have reached a “class-wide

Home sales in 2024 have been well below historic norms. Higher prices, higher mortgage rates and limited inventory are making for a slow market among buyers and sellers alike.Real estate investors tend to be more insulated from these dynamics, particularly from mortgage rates, as they are more likel

Austin-headquartered Keller Williams has expanded its presence in Wisconsin. The brokerage announced this week that it has added the Milwaukee-based Houseworks Collective real estate team. The deal brings 15 agents and more than $60 million in annual sales volume to Keller Williams. Houseworks will

With a federal government shutdown looming, a coalition of 12 organizations representing the housing and insurance sectors has sent a letter to Congress, urging an extension of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) that is set to expire on Friday.“Another lapse of the NFIP will leave millions

In a recent episode of the HousingWire Daily podcast, Editor in Chief Sarah Wheeler sits down with Bill Emerson, president of Rocket Companies, to discuss its recent lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the principle of appraisal independence for lenders. Th

Despite 2025 housing market predictions changing fast, there are still key themes and trends for real estate leaders to watch to best serve their clients and business. Jessica Lautz, deputy chief economist and vice president of research at the National Association of Realtors and upcoming speaker at

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) this week announced a new final rule establishing affordable housing goals for the loan purchases of government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from 2025 through 2027.The goals, originally proposed in August, are largely unchanged fro

The combination of the 2024 presidential election, anticipated future rate cuts, mortgage rate volatility and housing affordability challenges have led more potential homebuyers to stay on the sidelines. But a new report from Zonda says that after the election, consumers have started to regain their

Leslie Meaux Pordzik, who serves as senior vice president for the Office of Issuer and Portfolio Management at Ginnie Mae, will retire from the government-owned corporation on Dec. 27, marking the conclusion of a 36-year career in the mortgage finance industry.Pordzik has spent the past 13 years at

Are you looking to get licensed as a real estate agent in Arizona? We’ve reviewed countless online options to determine the best Arizona real estate schools to help you get licensed quickly and efficiently. These state-approved, online Arizona real estate school programs offer something for every ti

The COVID-19 pandemic turned previously sleepy cities into boomtowns. Expanded or permanent work-from-home policies gave people more flexibility in where to live, and those in uber-expensive markets like San Francisco and Manhattan took advantage by moving to areas where they could get more space fo

Known for its rural communities, quaint towns, scenic lakes and mountain vistas, New Hampshire is probably not where you would expect to find one of the nation’s hottest housing markets — but the data says otherwise.According to Zillow, the city of Manchester, New Hampshire, was the most popular mar

After initially entering the mortgage business in 2003 following a career change from accounting, Rick Rodriguez was reading a book about mortgages that included a chapter on the reverse mortgage product. He remembered thinking the chapter was intriguing and flagged it in his mind so he could look i

It’s late December so all the 2025 mortgage rate forecasts have been published. Unfortunately, all of them are already wrong.Most housing market analysts expect mortgage rates to spend the year with a 6 handle. The most optimistic predictions assume 2025 will see mostly low 6s for the 30-year fixed

Ellington Financial, the parent company of major reverse mortgage lender and servicer Longbridge Financial, announced this week that it has issued a $243 million proprietary reverse mortgage securitization backed entirely by Longbridge’s “Platinum” product line.The loans will also continue to be ser

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) on Thursday announced that it has awarded $225 million to 17 groups across 26 states as part of its Preservation and Reinvestment Initiative for Community Enhancement (PRICE) program that was launched earlier this year.The $225 million was i