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By Susanne Dwyer

More than 600 real estate brokers and industry leaders gathered for a night of fun, networking and recognition at RISMedia’s sold-out Annual Power Broker Reception & Dinner. The event, now in its 22nd year, was sponsored by Platinum Sponsors Buffini & Company, Homes.com, RE/MAX and Quicken Loans. It was held in Chicago in conjunction with the REALTORS® Conference & Expo.

The Power Broker Reception & Dinner honored the brokers who ranked in RISMedia’s 2017 Power Broker Report, as well as recognized four leaders who have gone above and beyond for the betterment of the industry:

Dave Liniger, CEO, RE/MAX, LLC – RISMedia’s ‘On the Shoulders of Giants’ Award

The ‘On the Shoulders of Giants’ Award, sponsored by RE/MAX, was created to recognize those individuals whose efforts, works, deeds and character exemplify superior achievements in and for the real estate industry, yet whose efforts often go unnoticed. The award was presented by John Featherston, president and CEO of RISMedia.

“We work in an amazing industry,” said Liniger. “I started in the business 50 years ago, and when I first started, I started with a very competitive attitude—’It’s me and my company against the world.’ As you mature over a long period of time, you find out that the cooperation that occurs among those in this industry is very unique…[and] to see the entrepreneurial spirit that comes from the ground level of independent agents working, struggling, no salary, no health insurance, no anything else, fighting, trying to make a living, to the broker/owners, the managers of the offices, up to the regional giants and the national companies. It’s an incredibly honorable experience. I am very grateful to be here.”

Mike Ryan, Executive Vice President, RE/MAX – RISMedia’s Real Estate Leadership Award

The Real Estate Leadership Award, sponsored by Buffini & Company, is designed to honor an industry visionary who embraces innovation and exercises resilience to blaze new paths to success for real estate professionals and consumers alike. The award was presented by Buffini & Company Chairman and Founder Brian Buffini and Buffini & Company CEO Dermot Buffini.

“I’m honored to be on this stage…but I can’t say the word ‘leadership’—or even think about it—without the team I surround myself with,” said Ryan. “Dave [Liniger] mentioned it [earlier]: some of you are worthy competitors, others are our partners, others are young people that have innovative ideas that can take us to the next level, and it just jazzes me so much. Thanks so much for this award.”

Nancy Nagy, Broker/Owner, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices KoenigRubloff Realty Group – RISMedia’s Tech Titan Award

The Tech Titan Award, sponsored by Homes.com, …read more

From:: Real Estate News

By Susanne Dwyer

Home prices keep rolling, up 5.3 percent in third quarter of 2017, according to the latest quarterly report by the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR).

“The stock market’s climb to new record highs, the continued stretch of outstanding job growth and mortgage rates under 4 percent kept homebuyer demand at a very robust level throughout the summer,” says Lawrence Yun, chief economist at NAR. “Unfortunately, the pace of new listings was unable to replace what was quickly sold. Home shoppers had little to choose from, and many had out outbid others in order to close on a home. The end result was a slowdown in sales from earlier in the year, steadfast price growth and weakening affordability conditions.

“While there was some moderation in price appreciation last quarter, home prices still far exceed incomes in several parts of the country—especially in the largest markets in the South and West where new-home construction simply is not keeping up with job growth,” Yun says.

Single-family home prices went up in 92 percent of markets assessed in the report, or 162 of 177 metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs). Eleven percent of, or 19, metro areas saw prices up by double digits. At the national level, the median existing single-family home price was $254,000, and the median existing condominium price was $237,200.

Home prices in the West grew at the highest year-over-year rate, 7.0 percent to a median existing single-family value of $373,700, according to the report. Prices in the Midwest followed at 5.6 percent to a median $202,400, while prices in the South were up 5.5 percent to a median $226,100. Prices in the Northeast grew at the lowest year-over-year rate, 4.1 percent to a median $283,300.

Affordability, meanwhile, remained weak in the third quarter. A homebuyer with a 5 percent down payment would need an income of $55,142 to afford a single-family home priced at the national median. A homebuyer with a 10 percent down payment would need an income of $52,240, and a homebuyer with a 20 percent down payment would need an income of $46,435.

“Affordability pressures are frustratingly occurring in places where jobs are plentiful and incomes are rising,” says Yun. “Without a significant boost in new and existing inventory to alleviate price growth, job creation could slow in high-cost areas in upcoming years if residents begin exiling to more affordable parts of the country.”

The most expensive metro areas by median existing single-family price in the third quarter were San Jose, Calif. ($1,165,000); San Francisco, Calif. ($900,000); Anaheim-Santa Ana, Calif. ($790,000); urban Honolulu, Hawaii ($760,200); and San Diego ($607,000). The least expensive areas were Decatur, Ill. ($86,300); Youngstown-Warren-Boardman, Ohio ($88,900); Cumberland, Md. ($96,400); Wichita Falls, Texas ($113,800); and Elmira, N.Y. ($117,300).

Existing-home sales, including condos, fell 3.1 percent to 5.39 million in the third quarter, according to the report. Existing homes available for sale were down 6.4 percent year-over-year to 1.90 million at the end of the quarter, with an average supply of 4.2 months.

For more information, please visit www.nar.realtor.

For the latest <a target="_self" …read more

From:: Real Estate News

By Susanne Dwyer

Home prices keep rolling, up 5.3 percent in third quarter of 2017, according to the latest quarterly report by the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR).

“The stock market’s climb to new record highs, the continued stretch of outstanding job growth and mortgage rates under 4 percent kept homebuyer demand at a very robust level throughout the summer,” says Lawrence Yun, chief economist at NAR. “Unfortunately, the pace of new listings was unable to replace what was quickly sold. Home shoppers had little to choose from, and many had out outbid others in order to close on a home. The end result was a slowdown in sales from earlier in the year, steadfast price growth and weakening affordability conditions.

“While there was some moderation in price appreciation last quarter, home prices still far exceed incomes in several parts of the country—especially in the largest markets in the South and West where new-home construction simply is not keeping up with job growth,” Yun says.

Single-family home prices went up in 92 percent of markets assessed in the report, or 162 of 177 metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs). Eleven percent of, or 19, metro areas saw prices up by double digits. At the national level, the median existing single-family home price was $254,000, and the median existing condominium price was $237,200.

Home prices in the West grew at the highest year-over-year rate, 7.0 percent to a median existing single-family value of $373,700, according to the report. Prices in the Midwest followed at 5.6 percent to a median $202,400, while prices in the South were up 5.5 percent to a median $226,100. Prices in the Northeast grew at the lowest year-over-year rate, 4.1 percent to a median $283,300.

Affordability, meanwhile, remained weak in the third quarter. A homebuyer with a 5 percent down payment would need an income of $55,142 to afford a single-family home priced at the national median. A homebuyer with a 10 percent down payment would need an income of $52,240, and a homebuyer with a 20 percent down payment would need an income of $46,435.

“Affordability pressures are frustratingly occurring in places where jobs are plentiful and incomes are rising,” says Yun. “Without a significant boost in new and existing inventory to alleviate price growth, job creation could slow in high-cost areas in upcoming years if residents begin exiling to more affordable parts of the country.”

The most expensive metro areas by median existing single-family price in the third quarter were San Jose, Calif. ($1,165,000); San Francisco, Calif. ($900,000); Anaheim-Santa Ana, Calif. ($790,000); urban Honolulu, Hawaii ($760,200); and San Diego ($607,000). The least expensive areas were Decatur, Ill. ($86,300); Youngstown-Warren-Boardman, Ohio ($88,900); Cumberland, Md. ($96,400); Wichita Falls, Texas ($113,800); and Elmira, N.Y. ($117,300).

Existing-home sales, including condos, fell 3.1 percent to 5.39 million in the third quarter, according to the report. Existing homes available for sale were down 6.4 percent year-over-year to 1.90 million at the end of the quarter, with an average supply of 4.2 months.

For more information, please visit www.nar.realtor.

For the latest <a target="_self" …read more

From:: Finance and Economy

By Susanne Dwyer

Lots of companies talk the talk when it comes to collaboration, but how many really walk the walk? According to Tipper Williams, operating principal of Keller Williams Virginia Realty Alliance Group, it comes naturally at her firm because it’s part of the DNA of the Keller Williams brand itself. “I have found the support from this franchise to be incredible at all levels—there’s this great spirit of camaraderie we share,” she explains. Combine that with a profit-sharing system that allows agents a retirement avenue and the autonomy to approach real estate as a true business, and you have an environment where everyone can—and does—win.

Maria Patterson: How did you first get started in real estate?
Tipper Williams: My background is in special education. My start in real estate came when I was purchasing homes to renovate and resell. We truly didn’t understand the process of real estate, and the experience didn’t feel good to us. There was an ad in the local paper for a real estate course. I thought taking the course would provide us with more insight into the real estate transaction and would benefit us in the future, so I signed up. I had no intention of getting into real estate, but the gentleman teaching the course was the president of a real estate company and convinced me to come talk to him. I started out doing phone duty and wound up being Rookie of the Year. Turns out, I had a passion for it.

MP: How did you go from there to leading the Keller Williams Realty Virginia Alliance Group?
TW: It was a progression! I was invited to join another national real estate franchise, and, while there, attended a seminar. They talked about the idea that in order to be a successful business person in real estate, you had to leverage yourself. I walked away with the concept that you have to run your own business to be successful.

Eventually, I opened my own independent brokerage. From there, I recruited a great bunch of agents. I was solely unprepared to be a business owner. I made a lot of mistakes, but I learned from those mistakes. I owned a mortgage company next, and between those two, I was completely burned out. Eventually, I sold both.

I then started doing consulting for individual real estate agents. They told me I needed to look at a new real estate franchise that was coming to town called Keller Williams. I interviewed for a team leader position and it seemed way too good to be true. At the end of the day, they offered me a position as team leader, and I took it. I figured if they could do 50 percent of what they said they could do, this would be the best company I’d ever worked for, including my own. They went above and beyond my expectations. They were what they said they were going to be—and more!

MP: What was it that really made Keller Williams stand apart?
TW: Definitely the educational opportunities and …read more

From:: Real Estate News