Real Estate

Brandi Schmitt and her family pose for a 2018 Christmas card in front of their Maryland home wearing protective gear, alluding to the water and mold damage in their home. Each year, Schmitt said they try to capture the family’s situation through their Christmas card. Courtesy: Brandi Schmitt When a nor’easter struck in 2018, intense

Democratic vice presidential candidate and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz (L), and Republican Vice Presidential candidate Sen. JD Vance (R-OH). Getty Images With the major party tickets finalized, many voters are watching the candidates for personal finance policy that could impact their wallets.  Vice President Kamala Harris this week unveiled her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim

An aerial view shows a subdivision that has replaced the once rural landscape in Hawthorn Woods, Illinois. Scott Olson | Getty Images Mortgage interest rates dropped last week to the lowest level since May 2023, causing a surge in mortgage demand from both homebuyers and especially current homeowners. Total mortgage application volume rose 6.9% last

Sdi Productions | E+ | Getty Images Home affordability has slightly improved for buyers this summer, according to a recent report.  The median new mortgage payment was $2,167 in June, a 2.4% decline from $2,219 in May, according to new data from the Mortgage Bankers Association. The index measures how new monthly mortgage payments change

A for sale sign in front of a home in Arlington, Virginia, on August 22, 2023. Andrew Caballero-Reynolds | AFP | Getty Images The average rate on the popular 30-year fixed mortgage dropped 22 basis points to 6.4% Friday, according to Mortgage News Daily. That is the lowest rate since April 2023. The 15-year fixed

Record inflation may have people questioning whether homeownership is still a good investment. Home prices have been rising faster than incomes, which can be a problem for homeowners because as the value of a home rises, so does the cost to maintain it. More than 1 in 4 homeowners with mortgages are considered “cost-burdened,” meaning

A row of traditional houses on a street in London’s Muswell Hill suburb, located to the north of London, with views of the Canary Wharf on the horizon. Georgeclerk | Istock | Getty Images LONDON — Britain’s major high street lenders have begun slashing their mortgage rates in a sign that financial pressure on households

The Federal Reserve announced Wednesday that it will leave interest rates unchanged. However, recent signs of economic growth and cooling inflation are paving the way for a widely anticipated September rate cut, which is welcome news for Americans struggling to keep up with sky-high interest charges. “Consumers should feel pretty good about the U.S. economy,”

Vice President and 2024 Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris speaks at a campaign event in Atlanta, Georgia, on July 30, 2024. Elijah Nouvelage | Afp | Getty Images “Building up the middle class will be a defining goal of my presidency,” Vice President Kamala Harris said at a political event in Atlanta on Tuesday evening. “When our middle

Valentinrussanov | E+ | Getty Images The Federal Reserve is poised to make the first interest rate cut in years this fall, which can influence mortgage rates to go down. Even small cuts in interest rates could make a meaningful difference in what a homebuyer will pay. To that point, people in the market to

A view of flooded streets after 24 hours of continuous heavy rain over Fort Myers, Florida, United States on June 13, 2024. Anadolu | Anadolu | Getty Images Consumers preparing to renew their homeowners insurance policy may experience some unexpected sticker shock. Between May 2022 and May 2023, home insurance prices rose an average of

A development towers over the Lyric Theater in Miami’s Overtown neighborhood. Greg Iacurci MIAMI — Nicole Crooks stood in the plaza of the historic Lyric Theater, a royal blue hat shielding her from the midday sun that baked Miami. In its heyday, the theater, in the city’s Overtown neighborhood, was an important cultural hub for

Even as home prices hit new highs, experts say there are signs that the housing market is becoming better for buyers in some locations. The median cost of an existing, single-family home in the U.S. was $426,900 in June, a new all-time high, according to the National Association of Realtors. About 3.89 million homes were

U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris delivers remarks during a campaign event at West Allis Central High School in West Allis, Wisconsin, on July 23, 2024. Kevin Mohatt | Reuters “Building up the middle class will be a defining goal of my presidency,” Vice President Kamala Harris said at a political event in West Allis, Wisconsin, on Tuesday

US Vice President Kamala Harris speaks on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC, US, on Monday, July 22, 2024. Ting Shen | Bloomberg | Getty Images As she is poised to be the Democratic nominee for president, it remains to be seen how much Vice President Kamala Harris’ policies will mirror

An aerial view shows a subdivision that has replaced the once rural landscape on July 19, 2023 in Hawthorn Woods, Illinois. Scott Olson | Getty Images Mortgage interest rates eased very slightly last week, but not enough to get today’s potential homebuyers off the fence. The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with

Patchogue, N.Y.: A For Sale sign hangs in front of a house in Patchogue, New York, on June 1, 2024. Steve Pfost | Newsday | Getty Images Sales of previously owned homes dropped 5.4% in June compared with May, to 3.89 million units on a seasonally adjusted, annualized basis, according to the National Association of

Halbergman | E+ | Getty Images Are you ready to buy a home? Many renters have no idea. Millions of renter households in 2022 would have been able to buy a house that year, according to a new analysis by Zillow, which is based on estimates from the American Community Survey by the U.S. Census

International buyers of U.S. residential real estate are running into the same hurdles as domestic buyers — namely high prices and tight supply — but they’re also up against a strong U.S. dollar, which makes the properties even more expensive for them. As a result, international buyers are pulling out. They purchased 54,300 existing homes

Housing is the most considerable expense for U.S. consumers — and while high rents and home prices are obstacles to saving for potential homebuyers, access to affordable credit is another significant roadblock.  An estimated 50 million Americans are “credit invisible,” according to a 2022 fact sheet from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s