Vetted by HousingWire  |  Our editors independently review the products we recommend. When you buy through our links, we may earn a commission.Creating or evolving your real estate marketing plan is a critical aspect of every agent’s overall business plan. Your marketing plan will determine if and how you’ll connect with new clients in the year ahead. It’s important to be intentional and choose marketing strategies that give you the highest likelihood of meeting and connecting with your ideal clients. If your marketing isn’t aligned with your niche, personal brand, and skills, you’ll waste time, money and effort pursuing it.I put together this guide to help you find your niche and create a marketing plan that’s aligned with your brand, target market and personality. I’ll explain why a detailed plan is crucial for every agent and walk you through the actionable, step-by-step guide I’ve used with hundreds of agents to help you create your own unique plan.In this article01The 3 real estate marketing tools every agent needs02Why every agent needs a marketing plan03How to create your real estate marketing plan04The full pictur: Creating a real estate marketing plan that works for youThe 3 real estate marketing tools every agent needsNo matter which marketing strategies you choose to include in your real estate marketing plan, there are three crucial tools that you’ll need. Your tools will evolve as your business evolves, of course, but these three will get you started on the right path:1. An easy-to-use, scalable CRMMost brokerages provide a CRM, but you can usually purchase your own if you prefer. When selecting the right one for you, consider how easy it is to navigate and whether it provides the functionality you need. If it’s too complicated, you likely won’t use it.Most agents don’t need a CRM to do anything but provide a way to communicate with their database, set up task reminders, and host a website. I’ve always used KW Command. But if you’re not a KW agent, our team of real estate pros have researched countless CRMs to find the best tools for every budget. Check out our research and top choices in the link below. The best real estate CRM for every budget in 2024 2. A mobile-friendly real estate websiteOur team of real estate industry experts researched the top real estate website builders to help new and experienced agents launch a beautiful, crisp, clean website that offers lots of functionality — not to mention marketing oomph.Ideally, you’ll want a website that you can bring with you from brokerage to brokerage. Check out top picks for every budget!3. Design & social media toolsI love Canva for all things design. It’s what I use for my coaching and real estate businesses. The ability to upload my brand colors and fonts for easy access makes creating social media content, Eventbrite banners, and all my marketing pieces so easy. Working in Canva, the design team at Coffee & Contracts has done the heavy lifting for you, creating a suite of social media marketing posts for every single day, for every platform. All you need to do is choose the templates you love and add your contact info, and then post them to your favorite social platform.Check out Coffee & ContractsRelated articles 11 real estate social media marketing strategies that actually work 30 real estate social media post ideas (+ popular agents to follow) Why every agent needs a strategic marketing planThe most successful agents have a marketing plan that’s specific and focused. With so many possible ways to find business, many agents (myself included in my first few years!) fall into a similar pattern — trying too many things at once, not doing any of them at a high level or consistently enough, not seeing results, and then feeling like a failure.Here are four benefits of a specific and focused real estate marketing plan that will set you up for success this year and for years to come:1. More strategic use of your time By focusing on fewer marketing activities (and those that are proven to work), you can use your time more wisely, strategically, and effectively. Rather than wasting time and money trying many different tactics to find clients, a detailed plan allows you to focus on just a few. I usually recommend sticking to no more than two or three.2. The compound interest effectIf you’re familiar with compound interest, you know that it scales exponentially and builds on itself over time. The same is true for agents who put their effort into one to three marketing strategies. Consistency is key, of course. The compound effect happens over time, yet if you don’t have a concrete marketing plan in place, you won’t see the results you hope for.3. The freedom to say “no” to everything elseMost of us default to saying “yes” to too many things. If you’ve ever walked through a vendor hall at a real estate conference, you know what I mean. We say “yes” to any new shiny object we find, and that typically leads to wasting time, money, and energy. Instead, use your real estate marketing plan as a guide. Ask yourself if this tool you’re considering buying or tactic you’re about to try is aligned with your plan. From there, the decision is made for you!4. Focus on your ideal client to create your ideal businessWe all say we want to work with any client who’s willing to hire us. But the reality is most of us prefer working within a specific niche. Your niche could be anything from first-time buyers to downsizers or investors. By identifying your ideal client before you create your plan, you can tailor your activities to your audience. Doing so will help you build your ideal business, working with clients you enjoy, in the niche you love.Fun factNAR reports that in 2023, 19% of homebuyers were single women, and 16% were unmarried couples. A strategic marketing plan will help you target these growing niches in the industry.12 steps to create your real estate marketing planNow that you understand why a concrete marketing plan is critical for your real estate business, let’s explore the 12 steps to creating your own unique plan. Download our free real estate marketing plan guide and template, created and thoughtfully designed in collaboration with Coffee & Contracts. It’s yours to keep and reference whenever you want to check in on your marketing efforts.Download Our Marketing Plan TemplateSetting the stage to create your real estate marketing planPlanning time usually doesn’t occur naturally in a busy real estate agent’s calendar. In my experience, planning doesn’t happen at all unless it’s purposefully scheduled and protected. This means carving out time specifically to plan your real estate marketing plan.How much time you’ll need varies from person to person, but in general, I’d allocate anywhere from a few hours to two days to work on your marketing plan. My preferred two-day approach looks like this:Day 1: You complete all the steps listed here and create a rough draft of your plan. Then sleep on it.Day 2: Revisit your marketing plan and make any adjustments. Sometimes, stepping away from a project for even a little bit helps you see it more clearly.I always recommend changing up your environment. Creativity and clarity flourish when we aren’t in our everyday spaces (home, office, etc), and even one night in a hotel (even in your own city!) can provide the space you need to create your real estate marketing plan.A quiet spot to think, analyze, and plan will make a huge difference. I like to take myself on a short retreat once or twice each year. 1. Identify your target market & nicheMillennials have been the largest demographic group buying homes for almost a decade. That changed in 2023, though. According to NAR, Baby Boomers purchased more homes than any other group that year — making up 39% of all home purchases. Targeting Boomers would be a smart niche if you live in an area heavily populated by this demographic. However, you should be very strategic in choosing a niche. While it’s worth considering the latest demographic trends, you should also consider who lives in your area, the property inventory near you, and who you’d most like to work with. Finally, you should take note of the folks you naturally encounter in your daily life.Perhaps you aspire to work with luxury properties, or you have a love for the new construction highrises that have been popping up in your city. Maybe you dream of helping first-time homebuyers and military families find their first home. I know It sounds counterintuitive, but the more narrow your niche, the better. You’ll see why in the next step.EXeRCISELook at your calendar from the past month. Where have you spent time? Where are you meeting with and talking to other people who might be close to buying or selling a home? Chances are you’re talking to more people every month than you realize!You may have had contact with your social group or with someone where you volunteer your time. You may chat with other parents at your kids’ school, with members of your church, or simply with your neighbors you run into when you’re out walking your dog. Maybe you have a strong college alumni network or a large extended family who would be happy to refer you some business.By assessing the groups of people you’re often in contact with, you’ll have some data to work with, and you can choose a niche that makes sense.2. Define your unique value propositionIn this step, you’ll want to consider what differentiates you from other agents in your area. Identifying your unique value proposition is a common marketing practice that you can apply to your personal brand to fuel the growth of your business.It comes down to identifying the pain points of the niche market you’ve chosen, assessing the unique benefits you can provide to those clients, and then communicating how you’re uniquely positioned to solve their pain points.You might think of this as a messaging exercise. If every agent can help sellers sell their home, what makes you so special? What’s your elevator pitch? How can you help buyers and sellers reach their goals in a unique way? If we met at a real estate conference and I told you I work with buyers and sellers in the Boston area, you likely would not remember me in a few months.But you’d likely remember me if I told you,“I work with retired seniors who don’t want the hassle of maintaining a large property anymore, who want more time and freedom to spend with their grandchildren, and who would appreciate having the entire downsizing process managed for them. I specialize in downsizing in Newton, MA and cover the greater Boston area.”3. Set goals for your businessEvery real estate coach and training company has their own advice about goal-setting. There’s no right or wrong way to set goals, as long as they are specific and measurable and that you’ve written them down. I advise agents to set several goals.How many people do you want to help (units)?How much money do you desire to learn (GCI)?How much do you want to work (days off)?Maybe your goal is to sell 20 properties, make $150,000 this year, and work five days per week. That’s specific and measurable, so as the months pass, you can track whether your real estate marketing plan is keeping you on pace to meet your goals.4. Audit your current marketing activitiesOnce you have the time and space to create your plan, start with an audit of your marketing efforts. Write down every marketing strategy you’ve tried or are currently engaged in. Then, write down how much time, money, and energy each strategy took. You’ll also want to keep in mind how much you enjoy each strategy!Finally, write down the results from each marketing initiative. Here’s an example of an audit one of my clients recently completed for their Chamber of Commerce membership.Example marketing strategy auditMarketing Strategy:Annual Chamber of Commerce membershipDues:$360Time investment:2 hours per monthEnergy investment:tiring, but funResults (units):5 referrals, three closingsResults (GCI):$30,000Completing this audit for all of your marketing strategies can be time-consuming and tedious. Not all of us love the data collection and math involved. Yet, it’s vital for your success going forward if you want to maximize your marketing plan results.5. Track & analyze your resultsTracking data isn’t sexy, I know. Yet, it’s one of the most important parts of a solid real estate marketing plan. It’s the key to understanding at a high level what’s working and what’s not. Knowing which marketing activities are working best will help set your business up for success. Tracking these metrics will save you money, time, and energy down the road!If you were the agent in the audit example above, would you continue your membership with the Chamber of Commerce? Is the return worth it? For me, I’d say absolutely yes! The financial ROI is incredibly high, and the time ROI is also very high. It breaks down to $1,250/hour if you consider this agent’s $30,000 return in gross commission income (GCI) divided by the 24 hours they spent on their annual Chamber of Commerce membership. This marketing effort also resulted in five referrals that may pan out in the future. The energy expended takes a toll, yet the agent is still having fun, even if they find their Chamber membership a bit tiring.Our marketing plan template includes a section where you can track your results. And yes, we made it simple on purpose. The simpler the tracking tool, the more likely you are to keep it updated. Remember, just like the best CRM, the best tracking tool is the one you actually use.Download Our Marketing Plan Template6. Delete, Delegate or Double DownIn this step in your real estate marketing plan, you’ll want to assess which marketing strategies to delete, delegate, or double down on. I call this the three D’s. Your marketing plan audit should give you a clearer picture and help you make decisions about which specific marketing strategies you’ll focus on this year. For each activity, you’ll decide if you want to:&DeleteGet rid of it entirely. If the marketing activity is not working at all or costing more than you’re making, delete it. I would even delete strategies that are merely breaking even, as those are a waste of energy and time.Eliminate these strategies from your new marketing plan and give yourself permission to get rid of them without feeling guilty! I’m telling you now — it’s ok to stop doing anything that’s not working — as long as you’ve given the strategy enough time.Some marketing strategies, like farming a neighborhood with direct mail, simply take more time to yield results than others. I recommend giving each strategy at least six months to one year before deciding to delete it,I know this sounds extreme and maybe a little scary, but remember — you can always revisit a deleted marketing strategy at a later point in your career — ideally when you have more time or money to invest or when you can afford to hire someone else to do it for you.DelegateIf the marketing activity is bringing results but you dread doing it, then delegate. Pay someone else to do it for you. This can be structured as an hourly rate or a referral fee on closed business. Or you can hire another company to help you streamline your efforts.Example 1: Hire an ISA (inside sales agent) to make cold calls and set appointments for you. This is a great task to delegate to another agent in your office who’s awesome on the phone.Example 2: Hire a graphic designer or marketing company to take over handling your social media content. I see a lot of agents struggle with this, and the convenience of having access to pre-designed templates is usually worth the cost.Coffee & Contracts creates gorgeous templates and done-for-you viral content for Instagram posts, Reels and stories for just $54 per month. The best part is they’re all created by top-producing agents and designed to actually generate leads and build your brand.Visit Coffee & ContractsDouble-downFor every marketing initiative that’s generating a positive ROI (and that you enjoy), double down. This is where the best results are found! By deleting and delegating everything else, you’ve created more time, money, and energy to pour into the right strategies for you. This is what alignment looks like, and this is where I see agents really find their greatest success.Not sure what to delete? As I’m coaching agents, I notice many of them yield positive results from cold calling — but they dread every second of it. If reading that sentence just now resonated with you, I can confidently say that’s a glaring signal that cold calling is not aligned with your personality. Be careful not to commit to any marketing strategy that’s too much of an energy-suck! You need to reserve enough energy to serve your clients well.If you’d like some help brainstorming your marketing strategies, check out The Quiet Success Club. We meet twice a month via Zoom and mastermind various marketing ideas to help you find more business.7. Choose the right marketing channelsWhen creating your real estate marketing plan, be intentional and strategic about which marketing activities and channels give you the highest likelihood of meeting and connecting with your ideal clients. If it’s not aligned with your niche, don’t waste your time, energy, and money on it. Here are some things to consider about your niche.Social media channels: The client who is on TikTok all day is likely not the same client who’s on Facebook or LinkedInWhere they spend their time: Golf courses, local parents’ groups, church, etc.Hobbies and interests: Hiking groups, gardening, book clubs, etc.Life stage: Are they young families with school-age children who are part of the local parents’ group? Are they active seniors who spend time at the senior center?Related articles 26 must-have real estate marketing tools for 2024 How to set up your real estate agent Facebook page to get more leads Here are some real estate marketing channels that are aligned with specific audiences:For first-time buyers: Use Instagram Reels or TikTok videos to market your business to new buyers, as younger people are typically first-time buyers who use those social media platforms.For Baby Boomers: Run Facebook ads offering a home valuation to find Baby Boomers looking to sell. This demographic constitutes the majority of homeowners, and many use Facebook daily.For buyers trading up: Join a parents’ group online or in-person to find clients who are outgrowing their starter home and need a larger property to accommodate their growing family.8. Align your marketing strategies with your brand & skillsetI see agents make this mistake all the time. They learn about a marketing strategy that worked well for someone else and decide to give it a try. After a few months, they’re discouraged and frustrated. They ask themselves, “Why did this work for them but not for me?”.It’s all about alignment. When considering marketing strategies (and there are literally hundreds of options out there), choose ones that make sense for your personality and your brand. If you enjoy networking more than cold calling, create your marketing plan around networking events. If you love writing, start a blog. Being aligned will make everything so much easier and generate much better results.Related articles Real estate mailers: The ultimate guide for 2024 Do viral videos get leads? Gen Z’s favorite Realtor weighs in 9. Establish your budget for money, time & energyUsually, the word “budget” is synonymous with money alone. I’d encourage you to set a financial budget, of course. But you should also set budgets for your time and your energy. Each of these is a valuable resource that needs to be tracked and measured to help you get desired results and not squander your most valuable resources along the way!Pro TIPMany agents don’t think about the importance of energy management. In my experience, managing energy is critical to avoiding burnout, staying healthy (physically and mentally), and enjoying your day-to-day life.A quick way to assess the energy you expend working on a marketing strategy is to give yourself a score of one to 10, both before and after each marketing activity. Ask yourself before you walk into that networking event: “How’s my energy right now, from one to 10?” then ask the same question when you leave. This is simply data collection to help you start to see trends. So, when you do your next marketing strategy audit, you’ll be able to make better decisions about which strategies are worth keeping.10. Schedule your marketing initiatives in your calendarSo you have your marketing plan in place, your goals set, and your budget determined. Now, it’s time to get into the action part of the plan by setting daily, weekly and monthly tasks for yourself. Determine the monthly tasks that’ll help you achieve your goals. Next, break these into weekly and daily tasks and block time on your calendar for your various marketing activities. Remember to start small, with manageable daily tasks. It’s like starting a new habit. When you start small, you set yourself up for success — for an easy win. That win will motivate you to do more. Momentum will build, and over time, you’ll get into a steady rhythm with your new habit.Remember to build your vacation time and personal days off into your real estate marketing plan. Don’t forget to take time off!11. Keep yourself accountableYou know what they say about the best-laid plans. Your calendar is key to your accountability. Set calendar events and time blocks to complete your daily, weekly and monthly tasks that you’ve included in your real estate marketing plan. It’s the only way to ensure you’ll do them consistently. I like to color-code my calendar, using green for all money-making activities.You can use a paper calendar, Google Calendar, or any other tool that works for you. To stay on track, consider setting recurring reminders in your phone or using your CRM to alert you to your recurring real estate marketing tasks. Most CRMs have task functionality with alerts to help you stay on track. Check out our list of indispensable tools, above. 12. Adapt your real estate marketing planYou’re going to want to return to steps 5 & 6 to audit your marketing activities and delete, double down or delegate. I recommend reviewing your results tracker quarterly, but at minimum, once per year. The real estate market constantly evolves, and so should your marketing plan and marketing messaging!Again, the goal is to save time, money, and energy and maximize results. Don’t be afraid to pivot and adjust as you go along. In deciding when to pivot and adjust your marketing plan, ask yourself the following questions:How much time, money, and energy have I invested so far?What has the return on investment been?Have I given it enough time to see results? Keep in mind some things take longer than others. Building a database and working by referral, geographic farming tends to take longer. Cold calling and door knocking tend to generate results faster.Am I enjoying this enough to continue, or is it making me miserable?Related articles 39 cutting-edge real estate marketing ideas for 2024 8 best real estate marketing companies to boost your business in 2024 The full picture: Creating a real estate marketing plan that works for youCreating an effective real estate marketing plan can be challenging, but if you focus on strategies that are aligned with your personal brand, skill set, and niche, you can create a plan that will carry you through your entire career.To keep you going through the mundane and frustrating days, your end goal should be your ultimate dream life — how you wish to spend your days, the freedom you want, and the work you’d most enjoy.Marketing to find new clients to make that dream come true can be mundane, and there will be frustrating days. If your marketing plan includes cold calling, there will inevitably be times when you simply don’t want to deal with another irate expired seller who’s already been called 20 times that morning.When your “why” is powerful enough, though, you stick with it. A “why” is that strong gut feeling, that ultimate motivation to get to your dream life.Vision boards are powerful tools to help you articulate your end goal and keep it top-of-mind. The easiest way to create a vision board is to collect words and images from magazines or printed from online that capture your goal — your why. Then, paste the images and words on a poster board and keep them in front of you, maybe on a wall in your office or bedroom. It’s a little old school, yes, but it works!About Ashley HarwoodAshley Harwood began her real estate career in 2013 and built a six-figure business as a solo agent before launching Move Over Extroverts in 2018. She developed training materials, classes, and coaching programs for her fellow introverts. Beginning in 2020, Ashley served as Director of Agent Growth for three Keller Williams offices in the Boston metro area. She’s now the Lead Listing agent for the Fleet Homes team in Massachusetts and a regular contributor to Vetted by HousingWire. She created The Quiet Success curriculum and has taught thousands of real estate agents nationwide. She has also been a guest speaker at top industry events and has been named a leading real estate coach by prominent industry publications. 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Interior property data company CubiCasa announced the launch of an interactive touring product for listing agents. The new CubiCasa Tour product will create interactive, virtual property tours within minutes.The new product uses similar software to CubiCasa’s Floor Plans, another virtual listing tool that builds floor plans in five minutes or less. CubiCasa Tour generates an interactive listing page in minutes using data and photos. Beta testers praised the product for its simplicity and low cost. CubiCasa President Jeff Allen stresses how difficult it can be for most agents to create an engaging home tour. He mentions how expensive cameras, production equipment and other virtual listing services are. Allen said that CubiCasa’s new tool is uniquely positioned to level the playing field. “Real estate professionals are constantly looking for ways to make their listings stand out, and with CubiCasa Tour, they can now create beautiful, immersive tours effortlessly,” he said in a statement.“You no longer need expensive 360-degree cameras, tripods or cumbersome subscriptions to create a virtual tour,“ he added. “Now, all of this can be created from a simple smartphone scan and listing photos. We’re excited about how this will enhance property listings across the world, as well as what professionals can bring to the table for potential home buyers.”CubiCasa outlines a simple process for creating a virtual tour experience. It starts with a five-minute property scan using a smartphone or smart device photo. Next, users upload that scan, along with any additional photos, to give the artificial intelligence materials to work with. From there, the AI takes over and builds a separate webpage for the interactive tour experience. Agents also have the freedom to integrate parts of their new property tour with existing listings. The announcement is one of several moves by CubiCasa to innovate. Recently, the company partnered with SentriLock — a property management solutions provider for the National Association of Realtors — to offer its Floor Plan and Virtual Tour products to 500,000 agents. As the new year approaches, CubiCasa’s efforts to expand access to interactive property tours may continue to grow.CubiCasa’s mobile application lets agents produce 3D floor plans by scanning the property. The company was acquired by Clear Capital in 2021 and houses 30-plus MLS organizations in its network. 

A recent episode of “The Loan Officer Podcast” features a high-profile guest masterclass. Host Dustin Owen sits down with Lower CEO Dan Snyder to explore his journey from studying law to founding a mortgage fintech platform, along with key entrepreneurial tips for aspiring originators.This interview has been edited for length and clarity. To start the conversation, Owen and Snyder dive into the CEO’s past before founding Lower.com, including his transition from a managerial role running the mortgage division of a small bank in Maryland.Snyder: We were one of the first retail P&L branches. We weren’t Fannie Mae direct; we weren’t anything. If you’re a small bank, it’s very hard to survive — no different than a small mortgage company over the last couple of years. So, they had to move into a place to position the company to sell. And, you know, mortgage is a great, great income generator for banks. Owen: You basically grew it from virtually nonexistent to doing billions in volume, and you probably made several mistakes along the way and learned a ton along the way. By 2013, the bank ended up selling.Snyder: Mike (Baynes) and I ended up starting Homeside Financial in 2014. We took a very, very small portion of the team. It was Bob Tyson, Chris Miller and Grayson Hanes. I had a little bit of a consumer direct background, plus I like modern tech, etc. Grayson and Chris had deep retail experience. Bob Tyson had a lot of operations experience, and Mike can do sales, finance and so on. We wouldn’t be there without a real balanced partnership. Owen: In 2018, you had this vision and you wanted to put juice behind it. What was that vision in 2018? Does it look similar to the vision in 2024?Snyder: I don’t think it’s changed since 2014. We’ve always thought about building. If we could build a company that we as originators like, then we could build something pretty great and durable over the long term. Focus on what you can do. That’s just the mantra. How far can we go? It’s good long-term thinking. I think it helps inform investments. It helps inform career paths.Owen: Was it in 2018 that you started figuring out how to raise money?Snyder: I tried to do the best to navigate it, but it was going to be really hard to raise money with a company or a brand that’s four years old in 2018. The investments were going to the new-age companies. So, we created a completely separate brand focused on direct-to-consumer and online.Owen: How do you see the future of mortgage lending? Snyder: I think that you learn a lot of lessons in downturns, and so we are committed to building a durable company in the future, committed to investing in our team, bringing that modern approach. How do we really provide elite-level service, help customers refinance in a few clicks, service our customers really well and be the source of authentic content at Lower.com?

California-based personal finance company NerdWallet has struck a deal to acquire brokerage firm Next Door Lending. Jonathon Haddad, chairman and CEO of the Association of Independent Mortgage Experts (AIME), is one of the owners of Next Door.As part of the deal that closed Oct. 1, NerdWallet is paying $1 million in cash for the outstanding equity interests of Next Door. It is also offering $3.5 million in performance-based earnout awards to certain Next Door employees. The earnout will be reported as compensation expenses through 2028 and subject to continued employment with the company. The Nationwide Multistate Licensing System (NMLS) shows that Michigan-based brokerage firm Next Door had 61 sponsored loan officers as of Thursday, along with four branches in Arizona, Nevada, Ohio and Texas.According to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), NerdWallet said the deal allows the company to “provide mortgage shoppers with more hands-on guidance. ” Tim Chen, chairman, CEO and founder of NerdWallet, told analysts during an earnings call on Tuesday that the acquisition is expected to contribute ”approximately 1 to 2 percentage points of growth to our Q4 ’24 revenue outlook.” NerdWallet expects to deliver fourth-quarter revenue in the range of $164 million to $172 million .“I have really enjoyed getting to know Next Door Lending’s principals, Doug [Liska] and Jonathon, through this process,” Chen said. “They are kindred spirits who bootstrap their business and share our focus on operational efficiency as well as a consumer-first orientation with the customer reviews to match.“While the upfront deal consideration is small, the strategic alignment presents a significant opportunity for us to drive better outcomes for consumers, lenders and NerdWallet.”  Chen believes the acquisition “will enable us to build deep and reoccurring relationships with consumers and take more market share while improving mortgage unit economics.” According to Inside Mortgage Finance estimates, the broker channel accounted for a mortgage market share of slightly more than 18% from January 2024 to June 2024, lower than that of the correspondent (28.5%) and retail (53.3%) channels. The analysis includes first-lien mortgage originations. Brokers originated $79 billion in mortgages in Q2 2024, up from $62 billion in the previous quarter. AIME named Haddad as chairman and CEO in January to replace Katie Sweeney. He is a relative newcomer, joining the broker channel in 2020. Before that, he spent six years at Quicken Loans.

By at least one measurement, affordability is improving for prospective homebuyers, even as home prices continue to rise and mortgage credit availability remains relatively low.According to data released Thursday by the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), the median payment for purchase loan applicants declined by 0.8% from August to September. The median payment for these prospective borrowers dropped to $2,041 last month. Monthly payments were down 5.3%, or $114, compared to September 2023.“Homebuyer affordability conditions improved for the fifth consecutive month, as mortgage rates near the low 6% range improved purchasing power for prospective buyers,” Edward Seiler, MBA’s associate vice president for housing economics and executive director of the Research Institute for Housing America, said in a statement.“Overall affordability is now at its highest level since August 2022, but the recent jump in rates will likely cause conditions to plateau. MBA is forecasting for rates to be around 6.3% by the end of the year.” Source: Mortgage Bankers AssociationThe trade group’s national Purchase Applications Payment Index (PAPI) measures how new monthly mortgage payments vary over time relative to income and uses data from MBA’s weekly applications survey.The average mortgage payment declined in spite of an increase in the median loan size for purchase applicants, which went from $320,100 in August to $328,000 in September. This was tied in part to a mortgage rate decline of 31 basis points (bps) during the month, the MBA noted. Average rates at the end of September were 100 bps lower compared to April.Also contributing to the lower PAPI figure were higher median household earnings, which rose 4.2% compared to September 2023. MBA reported that mortgage payments for lower-income borrowers (those at the 25th percentile of applicants) dropped to $1,369 in September, down $19 from August. This was also reflected in median payments for Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans, which stood at $1,753 in September. By comparison, the median payments an FHA loan applicant was $1,817 a month earlier and $1,920 one year ago.Mortgage payments for new homes also declined during the month, down $29 to $2,362, according to MBA data derived from a survey of homebuilders.Idaho, Nevada, Arizona, Florida and Rhode Island had the highest PAPI readings in September, making them the least affordable states for mortgage applicants. Conversely, the least expensive states were Louisiana, Connecticut, New York, West Virginia and Alaska.

It’s been one year since the Sitzer/Burnett verdict was rendered in Missouri. What has changed for real estate brokerages since then? (Image generated by AI in Midjourney)Editor’s note: This is the fourth in a series of articles that will explore the effects of the landmark Sitzer/Burnett case, which was decided on Oct. 31, 2023, and has since reshaped the business practices for real estate brokerages and agents across the country.Thursday marks the one-year anniversary of the jury verdict in the Sitzer/Burnett commission lawsuit, which found the National Association of Realtors (NAR) HomeServices of America and Keller Williams liable for artificially inflating agent commissions. While the day is still fresh — and further disaster could still strike — HomeServices executive vice president Chris Kelly is hopeful that this Halloween will be better than last.“I’m hoping that this Halloween, when I’m taking my kids around trick-or-treating, it won’t be nearly as stressful,” Kelly said. “I’m looking forward to a little bit less eventful Halloween.”After a year that saw real estate brokerages and agents grapple with numerous changes and concerns as to how they would get paid in the future, Kelly said HomeServices is working with its employees to refocus their attention on consumers.“For us, probably the biggest change has just been a refocus on the engagement that our agents have with the consumer at the inception of a real estate transaction,” Kelly said.The business practice changes outlined in NAR’s settlement have been a massive positive for agents, according to Kelly, as it has become more important for them to talk with buyer clients at the start of the transaction process. They must more clearly define the parameters of the relationship and set expectations for how the process will work.While many, like Kelly, consider the new practices a positive for agents and consumers, implementing them was no small task. Although many large brokerages had the education and training platforms already in place, the intensity and level of training required to get everyone up to speed in time for the business practice changes was something few had dealt with before. But Kelly said that HomeServices faced a different challenge when it came to retraining agents.“I think the largest challenge we faced was that despite this being a national settlement and a national rollout of new business practices, how those business practices were implemented in each individual state — which is something we dealt with being a nationwide brokerage —really vary,” Kelly said.Individualized supportThis challenge is not unique to HomeServices of America. At Compass, coaching leaders Courtney Smith and Ashley Donat said they have looked to navigate this challenge by relying on the expertise of top brokers and agents in each state.“We’ve always married very strong national training with equally strong regional training,“ Smith said. “And in a scenario like this, where the regional differences are so vast, we have really relied upon our incredible brokers of record and amazing sales leadership team to deliver on those regional nuances.”In addition to making sure agents and brokers are ready to handle the various challenges they may face based on the state they operate in, Smith and Donat said Compass is also working to help those who utilize different business models.“Not every agent runs their business in the exact same fashion, so making sure that the information being delivered is able to be distilled in accordance with the type of business a particular agent has is so important,” Smith said. “We are trying to take into account everything from their business style to their office, state and regional nuances, and then all the way up to the national level.”For James Dwiggins, the CEO of NextHome, agent education and coaching have been a central theme of this past year. While he is confident in the preparedness of his agents, he said the company has found some peers who have been woefully unprepared for the changes the industry has undergone this year.“It has been hard because a lot of our peers were not properly educated. They didn’t have proper guidance and most of the companies were reactive,” Dwiggins said. “I am not blaming them; they just didn’t take as proactive of a stance on this as we did. This really showed me that there is a significant lack of leadership in this business from the top down and the guidance has been horrific at best.”In addition to challenges posed by untrained agents, Dwiggins said the industry has also had to adapt to agents and brokerages that do things a little differently from each other.At NextHome, agents are no longer engaging in cooperative compensation. Listing agents are only advertising their seller’s offer of buyer broker compensation if the seller instructs them to do so. Otherwise, NextHome agents are telling buyer’s agents to ask for compensation in their offer and the seller can consider it.“The hardest part has been educating everyone that we are still willing to play in the sandbox, just under slightly different terms than we did before, and that our sellers are motivated to sell their homes and are willing to look at all of a buyer’s requests, but then they’ll figure out what is best for them and then we can all try to negotiate terms that make sense for everybody,” Dwiggins said.Unlike other firms, NextHome did not find itself as a defendant in a commission lawsuit until April 2024, when the firm was added to the Gibson suit via an amended complaint. Less than five months later, the firm announced a settlement.“We knew we were going to get sued, so it wasn’t a surprise,” Dwiggins said. “We knew the best course was settlement because the real estate commission system was rigged — we’ve known that for a long time. Settlement is always cheaper than going to trial, so that is what we prepared for. “Now we are taking a deep dive into our company and making sure that we are not only following the terms of the settlement but thinking about how to change our practices to keep ourselves out of further litigation two or three years down the road.”’Cream rises to the top’Although many firms like NextHome that were named in copycat lawsuits over the past year chose to settle, white-label brokerage firm Side has taken a different path by continuing to pursue litigation.“We had to look at it from our company perspective, which I think is what each company does, and then we all make an educated decision on what is best — whether it’s financially beneficial or some other reason as to why one way makes sense,” said Hilary Saunders, the co-founder and chief broker officer at Side.“For us, at this point we just don’t see a reason to settle. I come from a litigation background and I think you have to look at every lawsuit as its own, and determine if it has any merits and address those if they exist. And sometimes you have one that is just baloney and a money grab.”Saunders knows the past year has been challenging for real estate professionals, but one thing she is happy to see is that top agents are continuing to thrive despite the changes.“There is a big cream-rises-to-the-top situation going on, where the top-performing, excellent Realtors in the their given markets are rising,” Saunders said. “They are being able to command higher compensation because they have bigger opportunity to define their worth. And the others, who aren’t really good at what they do, are racing each other to the bottom using a discount agent fee for representing buyers.”At HomeServices of America, Kelly sees another reason to smile.“There is a high degree of stickiness in the agent-consumer relationship because the consumer sees value in working with an educated professional when they are transacting,” he said. “For most of them, this is the largest financial and emotional transaction they go through any time in their lives. And what we have seen in this past year — and really since Aug. 17 — is that bond still remains strong,” Kelly said.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) on Thursday said it will aim to simplify the process of funding affordable housing projects through the Federal Home Loan Banks (FHLBanks). The advisory bulletin came in response to comments by sponsors that have called the process too cumbersome.“Each of the 11 FHLBanks operates an Affordable Housing Program (AHP) providing grants or subsidized advances to fund rental housing and homeownership opportunities for low- and moderate-income households,” the agency said. “Nonprofits and other sponsors submit an application to the FHLBank, which includes a request for financial assistance to fill a project’s funding gap. FHFA, which oversees the FHLBanks, has heard feedback that the process is too burdensome.”In response to this feedback, the agency issued Advisory Bulletin 2024-05. It cites the ongoing need for affordable housing and aims to address it by easing certain regulatory burdens tied to the AHP program.“FHFA is simplifying the process of applying for AHP funding to expand the number of project sponsors and improve the FHLBanks’ ability to address affordable housing needs in their districts,” FHFA Director Sandra Thompson said in a statement. “Today’s Advisory Bulletin demonstrates FHFA’s focus on ensuring that the FHLBank System remains a cornerstone of support for affordable housing.”Among the input considered, the bulletin highlights feedback that illustrates a need to address certain regulatory hurdles.The FHFA aims to “reduce unnecessary obstacles to effective implementation of the AHP, such as uncertainty about the AHP subsidy amount or amount of debt financing at later project stages,” the document reads. The agency added in its announcement that the feedback largely emerged during roundtable discussions and listening sessions stemming from an initiative to recognize the 100th anniversary of the FHLBank system.FHFA also requested input on the AHP application process. Respondents suggesting “easing regulatory burdens and constraints associated with the AHP, and consistently identified the Need for Subsidy determination as a significant challenge,” the agency said.“They pointed specifically to uncertainty for project sponsors about the amount of their AHP awards and sponsors’ compliance burden compared to other sources of funds for affordable housing development.”The document also emphasizes that funding requests will need to be continually scrutinized by using “rigorous feasibility guidelines based on sound reasoning, to ensure that AHP funds support the projects most in need.”

The real estate industry is racing to find ways that artificial intelligence (AI) can improve business practices. ClearValue Consulting thinks it’s found a way.The firm has partnered with Restb.ai to bring computer vision to its valuation review platform called Certainty. The companies hope Restb.ai’s technology can help ClearValue’s appraisal review clients improve efficiency and quality control while also reducing costs.“Our goal has always been to provide clients with the most advanced, efficient and reliable tools available,” ClearValue CEO Don Juhl said in a statement. “By integrating Restb.ai’s technology into Certainty, we are taking a leap forward in appraisal modernization. This partnership will reduce resource costs, improve the accuracy of reviews, and generate greater efficiencies in the appraisal process.”Certainty is used by mortgage lenders and valuation providers, and ClearValue’s partnership with Restb.ai is designed to allow an AI-powered system to analyze photos of a property for identification and verification purposes.Restb.ai’s technology will be compatible with broker price opinions, appraisals, inspections and forms.“By leveraging our advanced market-proven computer vision technology, ClearValue provides clients with a powerful tool that reduces the time and resources spent on reviews, allowing professionals to focus on higher-risk valuations,” Tony Pistilli, Restb.ai general manager of valuations, said in a statement.Restb.ai has been busy on the partnership front. Earlier this month, the company partnered with Lundy to provide voice-driven property searches. The goal is to make finding a home on a multiple listing service more accessible to the visually impaired.In August 2023, Restb.ai announced a partnership with Bradford Technologies, another company in the appraisal space.“People are constantly asking how they can reduce costs and minimize revisions while maintaining high standards,” Juhl said. “With the integration of Restb.ai, Certainty offers an unmatched comprehensive review platform needed to meet these challenges head-on.”

Compass’s plan for future success? Become a hub for real estate listings. Brokerage founder and CEO Robert Reffkin laid his firm’s plans for the future bare during its third-quarter 2024 earnings call with investors and analysts on Wednesday.“Listing inventory remains the lifeblood of the residential real estate marketplace,” Reffkin said. “At Compass, we already have a depth of inventory in many of our local markets that is unmatched.”  One of the firm’s main goals is to realize an average of 30% market share in its top 30 markets. Achieving this goal, Reffkin said, would boost the company’s competitive advantage by growing the number of listings its agents have and the number of contacts in their customer relationship management (CRM) platforms.“By growing our listing inventory, we believe more and more buyers will search Compass.com and use Compass agents, as it will be known that Compass has more inventory than any other website or brokerage,” Reffkin said. “This inventory advantage includes not only our active inventory, but also potential inventory from our Make Me Sell program, which allows clients of Compass agents to provide an aspirational sales price for their home in our CRM.”Reffkin believes the Make Me Sell program, which will fully launch in all markets in 2025, will help consumers by creating the potential for more inventory. It should also help Compass by making it a hub for inventory and listings, attracting agents and consumers who will come to the firm searching for properties they can’t find elsewhere. “Ultimately, our North Star is to use our depth of inventory to create better outcomes for sellers, buyers and our agents, which, as a function, translates to better outcomes for Compass and our shareholders,” Reffkin said.While Reffkin’s vision for Compass may seem simple, there is one slight roadblock: the National Association of Realtors’ Clear Cooperation Policy (CCP). Under this policy, listing agents have one business day to list a property on the MLS once they begin to publicly market the property. Not surprisingly, Reffkin has become a vocal critic of CCP and is calling for NAR to repeal the rule.According to Reffkin, CCP “infringes” on a seller’s choice of how they want to market their home.“We don’t think this is right. Homeowners should not be forced to do anything they don’t want to do,” Reffkin said. “The future we are creating is one where buyers will know to search Compass.com, as we become known as the place homeowners list their homes early, through Compass Private Exclusives and Compass Coming Soon, which will protect them from the risk of MLS exposure. “For most homeowners, their home is their most valuable asset. It deserves the most valuable marketing. It deserves to be protected from the risk of MLS exposure.”In Reffkin’s view, no homeowner wants the number of days their property has been listed, its history of price cuts, crime reports or climate risk-related data to be shown with their listing.“The powerful real estate websites use these insights to empower their model of selling buyers to third-party agents,” Reffkin said. “In the same way tabloids use negative headlines to attract readers, real estate websites use negative insights to attract buyers.”Reffkin noted in his remarks that professional homebuilders and developers are excluded from the CCP. He claims that repealing CCP would “level the playing field” for existing homeowners looking to compete with builders.Industry professionals in support of CCP argue that repealing the policy would harm buyers, making the home search process that much more challenging and laborious for consumers and their agents. Reffkin addressed this criticism during the Q&A portion of the call with analysts, noting that many critics highlight the challenges of shopping for a home in other countries that lack an MLS.“In a lot of these other countries, it is not as hard as it used to be 10 or 15 years ago,” Reffkin said. “But look, I’d love to be able to search everything in one place. I’d love to go on Netflix and see any show I want, but that is not how the world in a free and fair market works. There is something called competition, and different companies come in and create different offerings.”At the moment, time will tell if Reffkin’s big play to boost Compass’s internal listing platform will pay off. A NAR advisory committee has recently refused to make a decision on CCP, referring the issue to its leadership team.In the meantime, with CCP still in place, Compass managed to record another strong quarter of growth. In Q3 2024, the firm’s revenue grew 11.7% year over year to $1.5 billion. Its transaction count jumped 16.1% to 55,872 for a total sales volume of $57.7 million, an increase of 13.4% compared to a year ago. Additionally, Compass grew its principal agent count 20% from a year ago to 17,542, while its national market share grew to 4.8%, up from 4.31% in Q3 2023. It also posted free cash flow of $32.8 million. Compass executives are standing by their guidance that the firm will be free cash-flow positive for full year 2024, a first for the brokerage. But despite its growth, Compass still recorded a net loss of $1.7 million for the quarter, an improvement over the $39.4 million loss recorded in Q3 2023.

AgentCoach.AI, an AI-powered real estate coaching company, is launching a new training platform for real estate agents. The Austin-based tech company will use advanced training bots on the platform, according to a recent announcement.The new platform will leverage specialized training bots to help agents prepare for business. Users can access AI bots designed to assist agents with general real estate knowledge, sales, marketing, negotiation and motivation. Productivity tools are also available to keep agents on track.Housing affordability is a leading priority for the new platform. The company cites high home prices as a key barrier blocking agents from closing deals more effectively.“Imagine being in a tough negotiation, struggling to keep a deal together. Calling a coach is unlikely unless you’re paying hundreds monthly. But with AgentCoach.AI, agents can paste their negotiation details into the platform and receive the perfect response — whether it’s a script, email, or letter,” AgentCoach.AI said in a statement. Each training bot is designed to tackle one of five challenges that real estate agents may face. The virtual real estate specialist bot assists with property insights, buyer engagement and client management for agents working with first-time buyers or sellers. Sales and marketing bots tackle conversion challenges and closing techniques, along with email campaigns, social media and other marketing tools.The negotiation training bot helps clients control deals with better communication. Agents can enter scenarios and language that prompts the AI to respond with scripts, emails responses, or letters tailored for a specific client and deal. Following that, the motivation bot keeps agents motivated with goal-setting software, motivational messages and mind-calming exercises. To get started, agents can keep their wallets tucked away. The company offers a free option with general tips, as well as three other options for individuals, teams and organizations. Before committing to a plan, consumers can test the platform with a seven-day free trial. AgentCoach.AI’s new platform comes at a time when coaching becoming more important in light of significant industry changes. Several real estate coaching platforms, including The Helm, have hit the market with solutions designed to give agents an edge. As AI continues to overtake traditional real estate business models, AgentCoach.AI plans to offer more computer-powered tools, including a property pitch tool for better property descriptions and a graphic generator that creates images for social media use. 

New York-based asset manager Rithm Capital, the owner of multichannel lender Newrez, reported a 58% increase in refinances to $3 billion in the third quarter of 2024 after mortgage rates dropped due to the Federal Reserve’s 50 basis-point rate cut. But executives expect things to calm down moving forward. “I think we’re going to get ourselves more to what I’ll say is the market on a normalized basis,” Newrez President Baron Silverstein told analysts in an earnings call on Tuesday. “That said, we see our direct lending channels, as we continue to basically get momentum through our recapture investments, to continue to improve and increase.”Rithm reported $97 million in GAAP net income from July to September, compared to $213 million in the prior quarter. Executives said that servicing has been the bright spot in Rithm’s performance, providing opportunities for originating refinances. In the third quarter, its servicing book generated total pretax income of $223 million, compared to $221 million in the previous quarter. This resulted from a portfolio of $878 billion in unpaid principal balance (UPB), including $755 billion in mortgage servicing rights (MSRs) owned by the company. “Year to date, we have recapture rates of 55% when including second liens as a retention tool, and 38% is just our overall aggregate refinance recapture rate through the third quarter,” Silverstein told analysts. On the origination side, Rithm notched pretax income of $81 million in the third quarter, compared to $52 million in the second quarter. The lender originated $15.9 billion in mortgages in Q3 2024, higher than the figures of $14.6 billion in Q2 2024 and $10.9 billion in Q3 2023. The company’s origination volume in the correspondent space reached $11.8 billion in the third quarter. This total dwarfed its volumes in the wholesale ($2 billion) and consumer direct ($2.1 billion) channel, per filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Gain-on-sale margins improved to 1.23% in the third quarter, up from 1.05% in the previous quarter. The company’s mortgage business corporate expenses were $58 million in the third quarter, compared to $45 million in the second quarter. Rithm chairman, CEO and president Michael Nierenberg said that turning Newrez into a public company will be “a 2025 event.” The company’s estimated book value is $2.9 billion. “Candidly, we have to figure out a way to get our equity price to trade where it should,” Nierenberg told analysts. “So, my guess is it will be a ‘25 event if and when we take this company public, and we’ll evaluate that.” In September, the company raised $300 million in equity. Nierenberg said Rithm has funded its growth through its “operating businesses, balance sheet and a little bit of high-yield debt.” He mentioned that since 2021, the company has deployed $5.8 billion without raising any equity. “As we think about risk, there are multiple wars going on. We’re in the middle of what could be a highly contested election,” Nierenberg said. “And as many of you know, we’re always engaged in activity to grow our platform through M&A, so I would say all of these factors are good reasons why we want to have more capital.”Regarding customers’ financial health, Nierenberg said borrowers who took out a mortgage in 2020 and 2021 are “in very good shape.” He added that, “You might see a tad higher in delinquencies, but overall, it still seems to us that the consumer is in reasonable shape.”Rithm had $2 billion of total cash and liquidity at the end of September.

You don’t often hear about someone with an affinity for nuclear physics finding their way into the reverse mortgage field, but that’s exactly the journey we’re charting in this edition of “Origins” from HousingWire’s Reverse Mortgage Daily (RMD).Rick Schluter, a New Jersey-based reverse mortgage specialist with Mutual of Omaha Mortgage, became engrossed in physics and math from a young age. That led him into a career with the U.S. Navy as an officer aboard a nuclear submarine during the Cold War. Going from there into reverse mortgages is not an especially common career path, but it was the direction he went.Affinity for nuclear physicsIn an interview with RMD, Schluter explained that he gravitated toward physics and math as a child, then focused his undergraduate studies on both fields. As he was finishing his bachelor’s degree, he became engrossed in nuclear physics, but he didn’t have the resources to pursue a career in that field since it often requires a Ph.D.But a military track toward working in the field was more realistic, he said.“I found out that the Navy had a good nuclear training program for those accepted as nuclear submarine officers,” he said. “I got in, passed and became the reactor controls officer on a ballistic missile submarine in the early ’80s, during the Cold War. After that, I taught at nuclear power school, where I was promoted to director of the physics division, and I found I really liked teaching.”After his service in the Navy ended, he became a lead instructor for commercial nuclear power plant reactor engineers and operators. But the money that certain Westinghouse salespeople were bringing in by selling the seats to the classes he was teaching enticed him into a sales career.“I figured, ‘If you can’t beat them, join them,’ and I went into sales in the nuclear power industry for about 12 years, then switched to selling enterprise software for eight years,” he said. “I made more money than ever but was miserable.”That’s when reverse mortgages started to enter the fold.‘Room to grow’ in reverseIn the early 2000s, Schluter came across an article in The New York Times that described the reverse mortgage product, and a particular statistic caught his eye.“[That article] said that only about 2.5% of eligible seniors had them,” he explained. “I thought, with the baby boomer generation coming up, this could be interesting. The article mentioned Financial Freedom as the biggest reverse mortgage lender. I called the regional VP on Long Island and she invited me to an interview.”During that session, her first question was unexpected and has stuck with Schluter ever since.Reverse mortgage originator Rick Schluter meeting longtime industry spokesman Tom Selleck." data-image-caption="Reverse mortgage originator Rick Schluter meeting longtime industry spokesman Tom Selleck." data-medium-file="https://img.chime.me/image/fs/chimeblog/20241031/16/original_66abad7d-ce8f-4581-bc9c-4a905ecd41d8.jpg?w=259" data-large-file="https://img.chime.me/image/fs/chimeblog/20241031/16/original_66abad7d-ce8f-4581-bc9c-4a905ecd41d8.jpg?w=884" tabindex="0" role="button" src="https://img.chime.me/image/fs/chimeblog/20241031/16/original_66abad7d-ce8f-4581-bc9c-4a905ecd41d8.jpg?w=884" alt="Reverse mortgage originator Rick Schluter meeting longtime industry spokesman Tom Selleck." class="wp-image-489844" style="width:200px" srcset="https://img.chime.me/image/fs/chimeblog/20241031/16/original_66abad7d-ce8f-4581-bc9c-4a905ecd41d8.jpg 1000w, https://img.chime.me/image/fs/chimeblog/20241031/16/original_66abad7d-ce8f-4581-bc9c-4a905ecd41d8.jpg?resize=129,150 129w, https://img.chime.me/image/fs/chimeblog/20241031/16/original_66abad7d-ce8f-4581-bc9c-4a905ecd41d8.jpg?resize=259,300 259w, https://img.chime.me/image/fs/chimeblog/20241031/16/original_66abad7d-ce8f-4581-bc9c-4a905ecd41d8.jpg?resize=768,890 768w, https://img.chime.me/image/fs/chimeblog/20241031/16/original_66abad7d-ce8f-4581-bc9c-4a905ecd41d8.jpg?resize=884,1024 884w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" />Reverse mortgage originator Rick Schluter with longtime industry spokesman Tom Selleck.“’Rick, who do you call on when you sell software?’ I answered, ‘Vice presidents of IT or chief information officers,’” he remembered. “Then she asked, ‘When was the last time one of them gave you a hug or baked you cookies to bring home to your kids?’ I thought she was joking, but she told me this job would be the most satisfying thing I’d ever done — and she was right.”To be clear, helping seniors was not the only reason Schluter entered the space, he explained. He saw a potentially large financial opportunity, but he didn’t expect to fall in love with the demographic as much as he did.“After just a few months, I came to love working with seniors — their stories, their humility,” he explained. “I remember sitting with a couple in their 80s at their kitchen table, and 10 minutes into our conversation, the wife asked her husband, ‘Harry, show him the picture.’ Harry pulled out a black-and-white photo of a Little League team, pointed himself out, then asked if I recognized the man standing behind him.”He did. It was baseball icon Babe Ruth at his Little League game, and Schluter fondly recalls that moment as a highlight. “That kind of experience really makes me love what I do,” he said.An active participantSchluter estimates that he has overseen the creation of about 500 reverse mortgages. But part of that is also about being honest in assessing whether it’s the right fit for a particular client.“I’ve […] advised dozens of seniors against it when it wasn’t the right fit for them. When I get referrals from elder law attorneys or financial advisers, if I don’t think it’s a good fit, I let them know, which surprises people — they expect a hard sell,” he explained. “If anything, that honesty has earned me more referrals because they know I won’t push it if it’s not right for someone. I just really love what I do.”When asked if his background in science, math and teaching has been beneficial to his approach with seniors, Schluter said that it unmistakably has proven to be.“I think approaching it from more of an educational perspective has helped me, and even now, I keep my hand in teaching,” he said. “I’m a guest lecturer in physics and astronomy at the local grammar and high school, so I think coming across as an educator has really helped me in this regard.”

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) came to a decision at a meeting last week on what to do about its Clear Cooperation Policy (CCP). That decision is to not make a decision — at least for now.The anti-climactic non-ruling was reached on Friday after the trade group’s MLS technology and emerging issues advisory board debated on the industry tug-of-war over the policy. Real Estate News was first to report the story.CCP has generated fierce debate from supporters and detractors alike. The policy, which requires Realtors to list properties on NAR-affiliated MLSs within one day of signing a listing agreement, is designed to prevent so-called pocket listings, or properties that are listed off-market and not advertised to the general public.Denee Evans, CEO of the Council of Multiple Listing Services (CMLS), emailed its members and NAR last week to issue strong support for CCP. She said that concerns about the policy are “inherently invalid,” adding that none of them “merit the removal or significant weakening of a policy so critical to the integrity of our housing market.”Given that exclusive listings are the lifeblood of an MLS, it’s not surprising that CMLS would support Clear Cooperation. Conversely, it’s not surprising that brokerages that want to maintain their own exclusive listings would oppose it.A spokesperson for NAR told HousingWire in an email that the advisory board in question met Oct. 24, its second meeting in seven weeks, which is “an accelerated pace reflecting the importance of the CCP issue.” Although members did not make a recommendation or take formal action, they did share the feedback received with NAR leadership, the spokesperson said.“As a national organization that represents members across the country, NAR continues to receive a range of passionate opinions about CCP,“ the spokesperson wrote. “We believe any changes to policies and practices as important as CCP has to carefully weigh feedback from a wide range of members, stakeholders, and industry experts. “With respect to CCP specifically, the organization must also consider ongoing litigation and DOJ investigations. As such, NAR will work carefully and diligently to ensure that we continue to review CCP to ensure a decision is made in such a way that is in the best interest of members and consumers.”Among the brokerages that oppose the policy are The Agency and Compass. The CEOs of both companies have been vocal in their opposition, stating that it inhibits seller choice and is thus anti-competitive in nature.Looming over the policy is the ongoing presence of the Department of Justice (DOJ) in the real estate industry. The DOJ has had a particular interest in rules related to NAR and MLSs.While the DOJ and NAR reached a settlement over the issues in 2020, an appeals court allowed the DOJ to withdraw from the settlement. That came shortly after NAR reached a settlement with home sellers over requirements make blanket offers of compensation to buyer agents on the MLS.In response to the appeals court’s decision, NAR has appealed the ruling to the Supreme Court. But a more immediate path for NAR could come after the presidential election. While the Biden administration has made antitrust cases a priority for the DOJ, it’s somewhere between possible and probable that these concerns would not be pursued by the DOJ under a second Donald Trump administration.Editor’s note: This story was updated with a statement from NAR.

A California regulator has revoked the residential mortgage lending license of LoanSnap, the latest in a series of difficulties for the fintech lender.According to a filing from the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation dated Oct. 18, LoanSnap had its license revoked after it failed to renew its surety bond. That policy, which is designed to protect consumers from lender fraud and financial risk, expired in early August. The department said it issued documents to LoanSnap within two weeks of that date, stating that the license would be revoked, and the company has yet to respond to request a hearing.LoanSnap did not immediately respond to HousingWire‘s request for comment.The company — which is headquartered in Costa Mesa, California — also lost its mortgage lender license in Connecticut earlier this month. The fintech was first licensed to do mortgage business in Connecticut in January 2021 and applied for a renewal in December 2023. The request was pending, but the license was suspended in July.A consent order signed by a Connecticut banking commissioner said that LoanSnap failed to notify the Nationwide Multistate Licensing System (NMLS) that its main address had changed. The company was evicted in May from its office in Southern California, with the landlord seeking unpaid rent of more than $530,000.The Connecticut consent order also noted that the firm didn’t provide a surety bond and falsely reported that it did not have any unsatisfied judgments or liens against it. But LoanSnap has been the target of several lawsuits in the past year.These actions include a Wells Fargo suit filed in Minnesota, where the bank sought more than $430,000 over an alleged breach of contract. LoanSnap also faced civil actions from Mortgage Capital Trading, South Street Securities, Anderson Tax and Optimal Blue, with the total judgment in these cases topping $1.1 million. HousingWire also reported in January that LoanSnap was hit with a cease-and-desist order in Connecticut due to allegations of unlicensed origination activity that took place during a period of several months in 2022. The state’s banking commission also charged the firm with violations of the Truth in Lending Act and the Fair Credit Reporting Act.Founded by Karl Jacob and Allan Carroll in 2017, LoanSnap raised $100 million in seed funding from investors such as Richard Branson’s Virgin Group; former NFL star Joe Montana’s Liquid 2 Ventures; and LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman. The firm offers “smart loans” using artificial intelligence and developed a cloud-based portal, LoanFlow, that aims to give mortgage brokers and loan officers the ability to originate loans anytime, anywhere.

Despite rampant political polarization, a majority of people affiliated with the Democratic and Republican parties agree that the state of retirement in the U.S. is concerning. This is according to a recent survey conducted by the National Institute on Retirement Security (NIRS).An overwhelming majority of Republicans (81%), Independents (79%) and Democrats (78%) agree that the nation faces a retirement crisis. An additional question about the concern level for reaching financial security in retirement was agreed on by more than half of respondents under each party affiliation.Debt levels are also seen as a universal impediment to retirement security across each political affiliation.“A large share of Democrats (74%), Republicans (68%), and Independents (68%) believe that their level of debt is problematic,” the survey explained. “About three-fourths of Democrats, Republicans, and Independents who have debt say it is preventing them from saving for retirement.”The most uniformity in agreement across political lines might relate to the Social Security program.“Americans overwhelmingly agree across party lines that Social Security must remain a priority, with 90% of  Democrats in agreement, followed by Independents (88%), then Republicans (86%),” the survey said. “Similarly, Americans of all parties want lawmakers to act now to shore up Social Security funding and expect the next administration and Congress to solve the Social Security financial shortfall.”Both Kamala Harris and Donald Trump have vowed to protect the Social Security program for older Americans. And while congressional candidates also vow to support it, their record of action on addressing the impending 2033 shortfall in benefits has been severely lacking over the years. Pensions are also viewed favorably across party lines, with a majority of respondents saying that the government should make it easier for employers to provide pension plans.But long-term care also remains a source for concern, as costs tend to pile up for older Americans living on a fixed income.“The vast majority of Americans across political views say they are worried about the cost of long-term nursing care, with Independents at 83%, Democrats at 81%, and Republicans at 80%,” according to NIRS. “When it comes to views about government doing more to help Americans get access to quality long-term, the overwhelming majority across the political spectrum agree that government should take action.”

When asked whether loan buybacks were a more significant issue last year than now, Freddie Mac executive Sonu Mittal says emphatically, “It depends on who you ask.”Freddie Mac has seen a nearly 55% reduction in repurchase requests from its peak in the first quarter of 2023 and a decline of 20% in actual buybacks of performing loans quarter over quarter in Q3 2024. But public filings analyzed by Inside Mortgage Finance, which considers repurchase requests and actual repurchases of performing and non-performing loans, revealed an increase to $430 million in Q2 2024 — up 29% from the previous quarter. This context frames the recent announcement from the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), the enterprise’s regulator, that all approved lenders will be able to access a fee-based alternative for repurchasing Freddie Mac performing loans with defects. This expands upon a pilot program launched earlier this year.In an exclusive interview with HousingWire, Mittal — the head of single-family acquisitions at Freddie Mac — said that the fee-based alternative will remain relevant in any mortgage rate environment as the enterprise “wants to incent lenders to improve their manufacturing quality.” The new model also provides economic benefits to lenders, according to Mittal.“If you are not a depository or a bank, you typically don’t have a balance sheet, so you have to sell that loan in the scratch-and-dent market, which was costing last year 15 to 20 points — and even now it’s still costing anywhere between 5 to 8.5 points,” Mittal said. “In a $200,000 house, it could mean up to $17,000. That’s very relevant.” Mittal spoke to HousingWire this week during the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA)’s Annual Conference and Expo in Denver. According to the program rules, instead of repurchasing defective — but performing — loans within the first 36 months after origination, lenders pay a fee based on the defect rate of their performing loan deliveries to Freddie Mac on that quarter’s aggregate loan balance.Mittal explained that lenders can opt into the program for 2025. In this case, the fee is applied to their overall quarterly unpaid principal balance (UPB) production delivered to Freddie, varying according to their non-acceptable quality (NAQ) rate.“If you deliver $2 billion in a quarter, we look at your non-acceptable quality rate, and wherever your NAQ rate is, we determine the tier on how much of a fee you will need to pay. This will all be disclosed to lenders,” Mittal said. ”If the NAQ is less than 2%, there’s no fee.” If lenders opt out, a new fee-only option will be applied on the loan level, but in a way that benefits lenders in comparison to repurchasing the loan and selling it on the scratch-and-dent market with a large discount, according to Mittal. “Our goal is, how do we allow the lenders to focus on the borrower or serving the needs of the borrowers or homeowners, while also having them not deal with the dynamics of the scratch-and-dent market, in which the cost could be much higher for the lenders?” he said. Other initiativesRegarding another initiative announced Monday — the extension of appraisal waiver methods for higher loan-to-value (LTV) purchase loans — Mittal clarified that Freddie Mac is not “taking undue risk” but is maintaining the system’s “safety and soundness” and “leveraging data responsibly.” In a social media post, former FHFA Director Mark Calabria called the decision “truly dumb & irresponsible.” The changes raise the maximum LTV ratio from 80% to 90% for appraisal waivers, and from 80% to 97% for inspection-based appraisal waivers on purchase loans, consistent with refinance guidelines. When asked about differing risk levels between purchase and refinance transactions, Mittal said that “it all depends on the overall characteristics of the loan,” meaning “collateral or appraisal value is only one variable within the whole equation.” “Another thing to keep in mind is that we’ve been doing appraisal waivers for years across Fannie and Freddie; we have a lot of data that shows us how the performance is for loans with appraisal waivers versus those which don’t have appraisal waivers. So, we went through a massive amount of diligence before we decided to expand it.” According to Mittal, the changes will go into effect by the end of the first-quarter 2025.  Freddie Mac estimates that its automated collateral evaluation (ACE) program has saved borrowers $1.63 billion in appraisal fees to date.Feedback for LOsFreddie Mac is also enhancing its Loan Product Advisor (LPA) automated underwriting system with LPA Choice. Through the new tool, loan officers have access to tailored information about purchase requirements, which is expected to reduce the number of resubmissions, save time and improve the acceptance rate of qualified borrowers. “What this enhancement does is specific to three areas: debt-to-income ratio, reserves and loan amount. Those are the three areas that we are giving a more prescriptive message to the loan officers,” Mittal said. “This is what could potentially help you get this borrower from caution to accept or qualify. We are not expanding our credit box; it’s just allowing you to have more insight on how to help borrowers or homeowners.” Previously, Freddie Mac had included on-time rent payments, cash-flow information and trended credit data as part of the risk assessment process. Mittal said the idea is to allow “credit-invisible borrowers” to have access to mortgages. According to Mittal, the solution helps because “there are a lot of funds that go unused.” He added that “there are loans that we are willing to buy, but that are not structured in a way that we can.”

Vice President Kamala Harris is the favored presidential candidate when it comes to addressing the lack of affordability in U.S. housing, while former President Donald Trump is seen as more favorable for stock market and cryptocurrency investors. This is according to the results of a recent survey conducted by Bloomberg.Less than a week from Election Day, the presidential race remains too close to call. But if the economy continues to be the “north star” for voters, drilling down into economic sentiments shows some nuance in their perspectives.“The stock market, up about 22% so far in 2024, is more likely to pick up steam under Trump than Harris,” Bloomberg said. “Some 38% of 350 Bloomberg Markets Live Pulse survey respondents see gains accelerating a year from now under the Republican candidate, versus 13% under the Democrat.”There’s a caveat. Should Harris be victorious, nearly half of the respondents expect the market to maintain its positive momentum into her term. But nearly 60% of respondents think a Trump victory will also continue that pace.But the market for potential homebuyers would be more beneficial under a Harris presidency, according to respondents.“The median estimate for [a 30-year, fixed loan] rate at the end of a Harris term would be 5.5%, according to survey participants, and 5.9% under Trump,” the story explained.According to data at HousingWire’s Mortgage Rates Center on Wednesday, the 30-year conforming rate stands at 6.75%, entering its highest territory since August.“Many potential buyers have been stranded on the sidelines in recent years waiting for borrowing costs to come down,” Bloomberg said in its survey results. “Sellers with mortgages at 3% or below, meanwhile, have been reluctant to move and take on more expensive debt,” describing the mortgage rate lock-in effect.Harris and Trump are making their closing statements in the final days of the election cycle. The past few days have been marred by controversies, with the Trump campaign uncharacteristically backtracking on comments about Puerto Rico made at a recent New York City rally, while Harris has distanced herself from comments made by President Joe Biden about Trump supporters.

Lower mortgage rates in September had a measurable impact on home sales.According to data released Wednesday by the National Association of Realtors (NAR), pending home sales in September jumped 7.4% compared to August and 2.6% year over year. NAR’s index reading of 75.8 is the highest number since March. An index reading of 100 equates to sales activity in 2001.“A slight improvement in pending-sales activity reflects August’s sharp decline in mortgage rates, which helped boost housing demand and provide some much-needed consumer optimism, particularly for the purchase of big items,” CoreLogic chief economist Selma Hepp said in a statement. “However, with rates pushing back to 7%, the rebound in pending activity is likely short lived and is unlikely to be enough to help 2024 home sales exceed 2023 levels.”The jump in pending sales occurred in all four regions of the county, with the West leading the way with a 9.8% monthly gain, followed by the Midwest (+7.1%), the South (+6.7%) and the Northeast (+6.5%). The South’s index reading of 89 is by far the highest of the four regions, with the Midwest next at 75, followed by the Northeast (65.6) and the West (64).NAR’s data release also includes a forecast. Chief economist Lawrence Yun said that over the next two years, he expects home-price growth to slow, which will also boost sales.Pending home sales data is the latest sign that falling mortgage rates in August and September boosted home sales. In the U.S. Census Bureau’s new-home sales report for September, sales jumped 4.1% compared to August and 6.3% year over year.But NAR’s existing-home sales report for September showed sales falling 2.5% from August and 3.5% year over year. The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller home-price index for August showed a slowing appreciation rate as a result of mortgage rates dropping during the month. 

In the latest episode of the RealTrending podcast, Amy Stockberger — broker-owner of Amy Stockberger Real Estate — joins Tracey Velt for a tantalizing conversation that covers her teamerage’s unique “Lifetime Home Support” model and other ways that agents can provide value to home buyers and sellers. This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity. The conversation kicks off with a window into Stockberger’s past and her early involvement with real estate. Amy Stockberger:  I was a buyer’s agent, then I decided that wasn’t for me. I had my sister come join me almost immediately, started a team with her and a part-time assistant, and then we started growing. Since then, we’ve been the highest-producing team in our state, and we’ve been lucky enough to keep on growing and serving in the Sioux Falls, South Dakota, area. Tracey Velt: Tell me a little bit about your “Lifetime Home Support” model and how it transformed your approach to real estate. Stockberger: In 2014, I noticed a major hole in our business. For the amount of clients we were serving, we weren’t getting that repeat and referral business. We created a serve-serve-serve-sell system for every step of the home buying and selling process.Velt: What are some of the key tenets of this model? Stockberger: First, we added a moving truck. The second thing we did was our party and tool shed. I was providing service to them, outside of just that real estate need, to stay top of mind and make sure that I was helping them in everything they needed. Velt: How do you encourage your current or past buyers and sellers to actually use the services that you’re offering?Stockberger: It’s very omnipresent. It’s one of the first things we’re going over. On top of that, has anybody shown you how the buying process works, or what’s new in the industry? We go through that too. We have a system and strategy for every step of the process before, during and forever. We just walk them through the unique value propositions that match their human experience. Velt: Looking for multiple revenue streams is really important for real estate leaders to do. What are some other ways that you are generating revenue through some nontraditional means?Stockberger: We borrow from the Amazon model and seek sponsors for our client events. Those are profit centers for us as well. And it provides an opportunity for our vendors to come in and be in front of our market and their target market, which is our audience. Velt: What do you think is shaping the future of real estate right now?Stockberger: One of the reasons we’re in the situation our industry is in is that there was just that perceived lack of value. I think that what agents truly should be doing is really tripling down on their service model. What are they doing for their clients outside of the transaction? What are the levels of care for clients for their whole human journey? Shifting from being transactional to transformational is going to allow certain agents to excel at a high level in our industry going forward.