In his first Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting as Fed Chair, Kevin Warsh held rates steady and announced the formation of five task forces to review the Fed’s operations. He also stripped forward guidance from the policy statement entirely. The FOMC voted to maintain the federal funds rate at 3.5% – 3.75%, citing solid…
Summer arrives with a positive sign for the housing market, as the National Association of Realtors®’ (NAR) pending home sales report shows growth month-over-month and year-over-year in May 2026. Gains were felt across all four major regions of the United States. “A late spring buyer rush—even with mortgage rates not budging—is an indication of pent-up…
Three Virginia congressional representatives have sent letters to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) encouraging further investigation into listing portal practices and their effects on housing affordability. Jennifer McClellan and Don Beyer (both Democrats) sent a letter to FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson on May 29. On June 12, Ben Cline (a Republican) sent a second, substantively…
The multiple listing service has always been a simple concept. But like a lot of straightforward ideas, everything gets a lot more complicated once you need to address competing interests, stakeholder priorities and operational requirements. Even so, MLSs remained a relatively unquestioned foundation of real estate for decades—until now. For the first time in the…
Housing construction took a definite hit in May as inflation reached new peaks and affordability remains challenged, as seen in recent data from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Census Bureau. The latest New Residential Construction report saw housing starts clock in at a rate of 1,177,000 in May, down a…
Editor’s note: The COURT REPORT is RISMedia’s weekly look at current and upcoming lawsuits, investigations and other legal developments around real estate. FTC lawsuit cost Zillow shareholders millions, new suit alleges A Zillow shareholder filed a securities class action in the Western District of Washington on June 9, alleging the company and its top executives…
With all that’s gone on the past few years within the residential real estate industry, from sluggish sales, tight inventory and yo-yoing mortgage rates, the hope is that this summer will continue the spring’s rebound. Chris Atwell is president of the Orlando Regional Realtor® Association (ORRA), and an agent at Empire Network Realty, a local…
Editor’s Note: The Mortgage Mix is RISMedia’s biweekly highlight reel of need-to-know mortgage-industry happenings. Watch for it every other Friday afternoon. – Mortgage rates ticked up slightly during the second week of June, from 6.48% to 6.52% per findings from Freddie Mac, but mortgage applications also creeped up due to so-called “pockets of opportunity” (e.g.,…
Consumers are feeling some minor relief as summer approaches, however the weight of economic challenges is still exuding some downward pressure, according to the latest data from the University of Michigan. In the preliminary results for June, the Index of Consumer Sentiment saw a positive shift for the first time in three months, jumping up…
Washington’s law restricting private home listings took effect June 11—and both sides of the state’s high-profile fight over listing policy have very different takes on the new rules. Senate Bill 6091, signed in March, requires that any residential property publicly marketed in Washington be concurrently marketed to the general public and all real estate brokers. …
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