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Dec

5
2008

Bye-bye to buyer's brokerage, bundling?

By Inman News, Friday, December 5, 2008.

The following is an Inman News Q&A with Ken Jenny, managing partner for real estate consulting company Mediatise LLC.

Q: Imagine how the real estate industry will be different when we recover from the current downturn.

A: There will be more permanent changes than ever before for the real estate industry and as a result of a changing consumer in the very near future.

As for the real estate industry, the business will be transformed forever by the new credit requirements that are now being designed and defined.  more...

Dec

4
2008

Real estate brokers must seize the reins

By Inman News, Thursday, December 4, 2008.

You would think that after the tumultuous drop in real estate values and sales, the influx of national lead aggregators, and the negative view of agents by consumers, that something would change in the real estate model.

Unfortunately, several factors have led to the status quo.

First, there is the agent-broker mindset that listing information is private property. This (mindset also extends to) the local multiple listing service, since it is made up of regional broker groups. And this fundamental mistake opened the door to many of the industry's current troubles.  more...

Dec

3
2008

Moving beyond money for nothing

By Inman News, Wednesday, December 3, 2008.

At the end of the day the current credit meltdown can be tied to one thing: easy money.

Regardless of how many times we hear terms like "CDS," "CDOs," "synthetics," and all the other buzzwords of the high-finance world, it comes down to giving too many people too much credit -- credit that they didn't have a chance to repay once the housing market went sideways.

While there are many examples, the ever-popular option-ARM (adjustable-rate mortgage) -- particularly in areas like California, Las Vegas and Florida -- allowed people to buy homes at seven to 12 times their annual income by using negative amortization and a rising housing market to mask a dangerous gamble that the market would let them flip the house before they had to make a fully amortized payment.  more...

A call for expertise, 'de-cruiting' in real estate

By Inman News, Wednesday, December 3, 2008.

Editor's note: Inman News is seeking input for our Roadmap to Recovery editorial project, which focuses on the future of the real estate industry. This article features responses to a set of forward-thinking questions posed by Inman News. You can view this list of questions at: Inman.com/Reinventing -- if we publish your responses you win a free pass to the upcoming Real Estate Connect conference (for new registrants only).  more...

Dec

2
2008

Growing 'in times of turmoil'

By Inman News, Tuesday, December 2, 2008.

The following is an Inman News Q&A with Marty Frame, general manager of Cyberhomes:

Q: How will the real estate industry be different when we recover from the current downturn?

A: The institutions in the industry will have been almost completely reorganized. This will not have been driven by either the consumer or by technology, but instead by capital. Ownership will change; the largest firms will metastasize, divest, consolidate, or all of the above. Many of the big names will have new names. But underneath it all, much will remain the same -- the best agents will keep doing what they do and a whole new crop of folks will look in from the outside trying to figure out how to do it better.  more...

Lost jobs delay real estate revival

By Inman News, Tuesday, December 2, 2008.

The following is an Inman News Q&A with Patrick F. Stone, chairman of The Stone Group:

Q: Will the housing market contract or expand in 2009?

A: Existing-home sales will probably decline, or at best be near 2008 levels. New-home sales will remain morbid, in the 600,000-to-800,000 range.

Sales of bank-owned (REO) homes will accelerate dramatically  more...

Dec

1
2008

Pessimism about 2009 recovery

By Inman News, Monday, December 1, 2008.

The real estate industry is coming to grips with the realities of the housing market and most professionals are not predicting a turnaround until 2010 or later, according to early results from an Inman News survey.

Those results are based on responses from 559 readers who completed the 21-question online survey. The survey asks participants to weigh in on: current and future market conditions, new regulations, new business models, and other business practices and trends.  more...

Nov

26
2008

Letter to Editor

Focus on the problems here and now

By Inman News, Wednesday, November 26, 2008.

Re: 'Beyond the Subprime Bomb' (Nov. 24)

Dear Editor:

Although I have not had the opportunity to read the book, the review leads me to believe that this is just a recap of what has happened. My opinion is that it does not take a doctor or rocket scientist to explain what has already happened.

Mr. Zandi's 10-step program to ensure this never happens again is just a summary of other news events and policies that have already been put into place. It is very easy for us to look back and see what happened, so my question to the financial experts is not what to do to keep it from happening again, but why did it happen and where were all the experts when this was happening?  more...

Commission pay to fade away?

By Inman News, Wednesday, November 26, 2008.

The present down market isn't going away. It's going to get worse. Housing markets typically take years to recover, and this one is no exception. Home sales in 1993 were at about the same level as they were in 1988, and there wasn't a consistent increase until 1995.

Even when the market stabilizes and recovery begins, the market won't see a quick rise in prices or units sold, absent significant immigration. Aging baby boomers won't be buying as many houses as before. The risk inherent to home-buying, eliminated by cheap mortgage money, has returned, along with a crisis in confidence. These factors will aid in a return to the acceptability of renting, which also permits job mobility and fast lifestyle change. Homeownership will be largely confined to upper-income people and to those in professions offering geographical stability and de facto tenure.  more...

Nov

25
2008

Brokers go virtual; agents take field

By Inman News, Tuesday, November 25, 2008.

Editor's note: Inman News is seeking input for our "Roadmap to Recovery" editorial project, which focuses on the future of the real estate industry. Find out how to participate at Inman.com/Roadmap. This article features responses by real estate agent Tim White to a set of 10 forward-thinking questions.  more...

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