Take steps to protect the house during the colder months. A lot of times that starts with the gutters. Unkept gutters can wreak havoc on a home during winter. Leaf Home, a company that offers home solutions, offers the following winter checklist to help homeowners prevent seasonal damage to their home.
Check your gutters for seasonal debris.
Make sure to remove leaves that have fallen into your gutters and check that pests or small animals did not seek shelter in them as they prepare for the colder months. Seasonal checks allow homeowners to ensure their gutters are in good condition, as it’s common for underlying problems to appear during the winter.
Continue…https://magazine.realtor/daily-news/2021/12/22/how-to-prevent-seasonal-property-damage

With growing demand for home remodeling and construction material shortages, budgeting accordingly for house projects has been unpredictable. Many homeowners may be getting sticker-shocked at how much certain house projects and repairs are costing.
HomeAdvisor surveyed more than 900 consumers to learn about their outlook on home improvement and how accurately they estimate specific projects.
Interior painting has been one of the most popular home improvement projects ever since the pandemic began. Yet, more than 25% of homeowners underestimate interior painting costs, the study found. About a quarter of homeowners underestimate interior painting costs by about 50%.
https://magazine.realtor/daily-news/2021/12/21/homeowners-misjudge-costs-of-these-renovation-projects

Buyers have been drawn to new-home construction as existing housing inventories remain lean. Builders have struggled to ramp up construction even more due to the high demand as building materials, labor, and lot shortages loom.
However, builders say they’re building as much as they can and as quickly as they can given such challenges.
Housing starts for both single-family and multifamily homes rose 11.8% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.68 million units in November, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and U.S. Census Bureau reported on Thursday. Broken out, single-family housing starts increased 11.3% to a 1.17 million annual rate while the multifamily sector, which includes apartment buildings and condos, climbed 12.9% to an annual 506,000 pace.
https://magazine.realtor/daily-news/2021/12/17/housing-starts-pick-up-as-2021-comes-to-a-close

The housing market still remains ultra-competitive in some parts of the country, despite what is typically a slowdown in real estate. A four-bedroom, 2,400-square foot newly remodeled home in San Francisco recently sold for $3.5 million—40% more than the initial asking price of $2.5 million. That is $1 million above list price.
The home fetched three offers in three days. All three offers were more than $500,000 above the asking price, Compass listing agents Richard Woo and Holly Phan told KRON-4 News.
“We didn’t price the house low—it was priced based on area comps so when we saw the offer come in at more than $1 million over asking with no contingencies, it was amazing and we thought, is this real?” Woo told KRON-4 News.
Continue… https://magazine.realtor/daily-news/2021/12/20/san-francisco-home-sells-for-1m-above-asking-price

The housing market is hot, but some homeowners may overestimate just how hot it is when they go to sell. Real estate professionals shared with realtor.com® a few unrealistic expectationss that some of their sellers have had, such as that their home has doubled in value since they bought it or that they shouldn’t have to make any repairs before closing.
“One of the biggest mistakes sellers can make is going with aspirational pricing just because it is a seller’s market,” Jeremy Bolger, a real estate salesperson with Brown Harris Stevens in New York City, told realtor.com®. “We have seen many deals get multiple offers and go at or over ask, but they almost always stem from buyers sensing some form of value. And if there is no perceived value, buyers will often stay on the sidelines, even with limited inventory.”
Continue…https://magazine.realtor/daily-news/2021/12/14/misconceptions-about-a-seller-s-market

Many paint firms have selected a green hue for their 2022 top color pick, but Pantone is making a much bolder choice. Could this be another hot color for home interiors in the new year?
The 2022 Pantone color of the year is Very Peri, a periwinkle blue with violet-red undertones. The color was created by Pantone specifically as the color of the year. The bright color is intended to evoke comfort and courage in unpredictable times, Pantone says.
The paint firm says the color can serve as a “much-needed” color pop in the home. They believe it’ll be a hot color choice for bolder home accessories and an eye-catching hue mixed into a pattern or painted on a colorful accent wall or a ceiling to create depth.
Continue… https://magazine.realtor/daily-news/2021/12/09/pantone-s-2022-color-of-the-year-breaks-from-pack

Mortgage rates held steady this week as the world awaits more information about the severity of the omicron variant of COVID-19 and ongoing supply chain issues. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.11%, Freddie Mac reports.
“Mortgage rates continue to remain stable notwithstanding volatility in the financial markets,” says Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. “The consistency of rates in the face of changes in the economy is primarily due to the evolution of the pandemic, which lingers and continues to pose uncertainty. This low mortgage rate environment offers favorable conditions for refinancing.”
Continue…https://magazine.realtor/daily-news/2021/12/03/mortgage-rates-remain-stable-for-now

Contract signings climbed 7.5% in October, and home sales for 2021 are on pace to hit a 15-year high, the National Association of REALTORS® reported Monday. Pending home sales rebounded after a decline in September.
Despite rising mortgage rates, home buyers appear undeterred by higher financing costs and home prices. Contract activity increased month over month in all four major regions of the U.S. NAR’s Pending Home Sales Index is a forward-looking indicator of home sales based on contract signings.
“Motivated by fast-rising rents and the anticipated increase in mortgage rates, consumers that are on strong financial footing are signing contracts to purchase a home sooner rather than later,” says Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist. “This solid buying is a testament to demand still being relatively high, as it is occurring during a time when inventory is still markedly low.”
Continue… https://magazine.realtor/daily-news/2021/11/29/home-buyers-eager-to-act-sooner-rather-than-later

Home design is getting more personal. More homeowners are using their homes to show their individuality and design freedom, according to home design experts at The Plan Collection, an online home design firm.
“It makes sense as people have gone from having to be home to wanting to be at home in an environment that expresses their personalities and individual tastes,” says Laurel Vernazza, home design expert at The Plan Collection. “Since no one could travel, homeowners had to bring those experiences into their homes.”
The Plan Collection’s team offers its predictions of the hot home design and building trends for 2022, including:
Continue… https://magazine.realtor/daily-news/2021/11/11/5-home-design-building-trends-to-watch-in-2022

Home buyers are still snatching up homes at a quick pace. Homes sold more quickly in October than in any October in recent history, according to realtor.com®’s Monthly Housing Report.
The typical home spent just 45 days on the market in October, reaching an eight-month streak of homes selling faster than in any month before 2021, realtor.com® says.
“The year may be winding down, but 2021’s feverish pace of home sales continues to hit new records,” says Danielle Hale, realtor.com®’s chief economist. “Despite returns to more typical pre-COVID seasonality which means a slower fall versus summer season, October housing data suggests that demand is still unseasonably high.”
Continue… https://magazine.realtor/daily-news/2021/11/10/homes-continue-to-sell-at-record-speeds