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The internet and the smartphone help with all kinds of tasks. But can technology support accessibility at home?  

Property-related technology, or proptech, can indeed.

To start, tech innovations can make housing safer. They can monitor and improve indoor air quality. They can warn us about potential outages of basic systems in our homes. Smart tech can help people with audio or visual disabilities do more — or do it more easily — at home.

There’s so much innovation happening. We’ll take a look at just a few examples here.

Continue reading “Inclusivity Matters: Making Real Estate Accessible”

With climate change impacting more and more real estate, insurance keeps getting pricier. As we reported last year, mortgage lenders for coastal homes often expect 40% down payments, just to offset the risks. This year, the insurance tech company Policygenius published a study showing U.S. homeowners’ insurance rising at a remarkable 12%+ rate.

Among the top five reasons Policygenius lists for the rising premiums are “record catastrophe losses” and “severe natural disasters.”

Times are changing for real estate. And now, an industry is growing up around the concept of climate-resilient buildings. The largest investment fund in this area is being led by a firm named Fifth Wall.

Here’s the news on these developments.

Continue reading “Insurers Hike Prices, Pointing to Climate. Investors See New Opportunities.”

Spring is high season for home sales. But buying in winter means settling down in time to watch the garden bloom in a new home. There’s a lot to be said for that.

In the northern latitudes, home shopping can mean weather-related holdups here and there. But winter is a great time to work with mortgage consultants and real estate agents. It’s also the perfect time to see how a place looks and feels when the comforts of home matter most.

Continue reading “The Truth About Buying a Home in Winter”

Owning a decent, healthful, attainably priced home should be possible for everyone. Buyers in the modest- and middle-income categories should be able to achieve homeownership. After all, buying a home is considered a key to building up a store of value and attaining financial safety.

Lately, though, the dream of homeownership has been fading for many. Can technology help our society provide real estate opportunities to all?

Continue reading “Can Tech Make Real Estate Affordable?”

The Endangered Species Act (ESA) protects at-risk species. Most everyone supports its mission. But when it impacts the property they own, developers and landowners may believe the law clashes with their 5th Amendment rights. Why? The law regulates their use of property — which sometimes amounts to a taking without payment to the owner.

In the interest of defending private landowner rights, the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) wants law reform. NAR says landowners should get paid for assisting at-risk species rather than give up the economic value in their properties.

Continue reading “When the Endangered Species Act Hits Home”

All home buyers have some repair work ahead of them. Sometimes, only finishing touches are needed. In other cases, major systems need replacement.

A new buyer should budget for significant costs in the first year. But the real kicker is just how much people who buy brand-new homes will likely spend. On average, a typical buyer of a newly built home spends $12K to $16K and more to spruce up the place. And that’s just in the first year of homeownership.

Continue reading “Buying a House. How Much Do I Budget for Repairs?”

What’ll this market do in 2023? Economists envision home prices dropping throughout the year. A report from the research firm Capital Economics predicts an 8% drop, which is in the range others are predicting, too.

Then, its forecast shows property values rising back up again — by 2.5% in late 2024.

Morgan Stanley analysts believe prices will fall 7% by December 2023 from their June 2022 highs. Moody’s Analytics expects a 10% drop by mid-2024 — and drops much bigger than that in the markets that went red-hot. Consider Austin, Texas, where prices are up 60% since the pandemic began. As high as that figure is, it’s sliding. Since summer 2022, Austin property values are already down more than 8%.

Overall, this seems like a reprieve for hopeful buyers. But will it bring what we really need: many affordable homes for sale?  

Here’s what current forecasts show.

Continue reading “Home Prices Will Fall. But Affordability? Don’t Count on It”