While commercial real estate has historically relied on price-per-square-foot evaluations, residential real estate has often used other methods for an assortment of reasons. A comparative market analysis, or CMA, is a report that compares a property with other similar ones in the area (based on features including size, amenities, and location) that are either on… Read more »
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Listing Agents & Home Inspections: Conflicting Opinions
Home inspections are often the deciding factor for whether or not a buyer decides to move forward with a deal. While the buyer, buyer’s agent, and inspector always have to be present at inspections, for the listing agent it is more ambiguous. Some say it is not the listing agent’s responsibility, so they can skip… Read more »
Loan Originations & All-Cash Purchase Trends in the D.C. Area
With 2015 wrapped up and data from Q4 2015 analyzed, it is now possible to identify the direction in which the DC area housing market is moving. Read on to learn several surprising trends in the DC metro area housing market. 2.2% Uptick in D.C. Loan Originations in Q4 Nationwide, the U.S. Residential Property Loan… Read more »
Class Action Over TRID Compliance Moves Forward
A California federal court class action suit against real estate organizations Realogy Holdings and PHH Home Loans continues forward even as the defendants’ settlement services formally move to dismiss. Filed in November by a collective of local homebuyers, the suit alleges that Realogy Holdings directed clients to use a joint venture called PHH Home Loans, a violation of the Real Estate Settlement… Read more »
Changes to Fair Labor Standards Act Could Hurt Mortgage Companies’ Bottom Lines
Recently, the U.S. Department of Labor proposed a change to the current stipulations of the Fair Labor Standards Act. If these changes were to go into effect, an estimated 4.6 million workers would become eligible for overtime pay from their employers. While good news for mortgage workers, it would ultimately take a significant cut of… Read more »
Beyond the Chatter: TRID’s Real Impact on Realtors and Lenders
Tired of TRID talk? As a DC Metro area title insurance company, we understand the scope and severity of TRID—but we’ve decided to hold our commentary until the dust settles. Now that it’s been several months since implementation, we’d like to give you a summary of where we’re at. In October 2015, the mortgage industry… Read more »
11 Things You Didn’t Know about Real Estate
As leaders in Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia title insurance, we’re usually busy writing up the latest industry news. Today, we’d like to take a look at the less droll side of real estate with eleven fun facts you probably didn’t know. 1. McDonald’s: Real Estate Mogul? With over 35,000 properties, McDonald’s has amassed an… Read more »
5 Common TRID Violations, According to the Experts
TRID has been in effect for nearly four months, and lenders are still adjusting to the new rules. Though title companies like Champion Title have been helping lenders meet TRID requirements for months, many lenders have not been so fortunate. TRID violations have occurred, and all the violations have been completely avoidable. Today we’ll look… Read more »
The Results are in: 2015 Housing Market Recap
Now that we’ve rung in 2016, we can finally take a good look at last year’s trends in the housing market. 2015 demonstrated an overall upward trajectory, which will likely continue into 2016. The housing market has all but regained its stability from before the housing market crash, and that is good news for everyone… Read more »