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The Federal Reserve’s latest rate hike may be like a late frost creeping over the fragile spring housing market.

In the wake of the Fed increasing its rates by 0.25% on Wednesday afternoon, mortgage interest rates are expected to rise again. That’s going to hurt buyers grappling with still-high home prices, mortgage rates that are already nearing 7%, and a lack of properties for sale. Sellers will also share in the pain as there will be fewer buyers who can afford to jump into the fray and pay top dollar for their homes.

The housing market had begun to thaw as mortgage rates had temporarily fallen to the low 6% range. But this expected rate increase could halt the momentum that had been building.

“With home prices and mortgage rates already pushing the edge of the envelope for many shoppers’ budgets, it’s not surprising to see homebuyers respond when rates fluctuate,” says Realtor.com® Chief Economist Danielle Hale. “When rates rise, we see signs that buyers are pulling back, but when rates drop, homebuyers seem to jump back in the market.”

Mortgage rates expected to ease even as Fed vows to continue "quantitative tightening" that's trimming mortgage holdings by $35 billion a month.

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On “Fixer to Fabulous,” Dave and Jenny Marrs have been making over their hometown of Bentonville, AR, one house at a time. Now they’ve stepped it up and are revitalizing the whole town.

In the latest episode, “Historic Bank Into Mercantile,” they revisit Centerton. In this neighboring town, the couple have purchased a former bank built in 1905, for $130,000. They’ve already spent $100,000 converting the upstairs level into a chic apartment and office space.

Now, it’s time to tackle the first floor, spending $100,000 to transform it into a store called “Marrs Mercantile,” where they’ll sell baked goods and lifestyle items handmade by local artisans.

Remind you of anyone … or place? Sounds a lot like how Chip and Joanna Gaines of “Fixer Upper” fame morphed Waco, TX, into a tourist destination with a full slate of stores, restaurants, and attractions. It’s certainly a smart way to revitalize a sleepy downtown, and the renovations could apply to an assortment of spaces—residential, commercial, and otherwise. Check out how this latest project unfolds, and snag a little DIY inspiration.

The unusually wide "spread" between 10-year Treasury yields and 30-year fixed-rate mortgages means mortgage rates could have more room to come down.

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Tax season is here—and while many gripe about forking money over to Uncle Sam, the real question is: Are your tax dollars being put to good use?

Odds are, you’re aware that certain areas have high taxes, while other places enjoy a lower rate. But rock-bottom taxes aren’t necessarily a good thing if your streets are riddled with potholes and petty crime. Ideally, the money people pay in taxes is used to improve their communities, but a recent study suggests that certain states are much better at this than others.

According to WalletHub‘s Best & Worst Taxpayer ROI rankings for 2023, Americans’ tax payments offer wildly different rates of return on that investment, depending on where they live.

To help break it down, their team of data analysts compared how much residents pay in taxes, on average, to how much those funds end up impacting five key categories of livability: education (graduation rates, pre-K funding), health (number of hospital beds, life expectancy), safety (crime, car crashes), economy (unemployment rate), and infrastructure (water/air quality and bridge/road maintenance).

Business ethics firm Ethisphere released its 2023 rankings on Tuesday, which honored four real estate brands including Anywhere, CBRE Group, JLL and Thailand-based DTGO.

Using a professional stager prior to putting your home up for sale can be beneficial in many ways. A professional stager can help make your home look more attractive and appealing to potential buyers, which can lead to a quicker sale and a higher selling price. Here are some reasons why you may want to consider using a professional stager: Highligh...

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The Deegan clan is headed to the Sunshine State.

Brian Deegan, the most decorated freestyle motocross rider in X Games history, is pulling up stakes in North Carolina so he and his family can spend more time in Florida, his wife Marissa Deegan announced on Instagram.

The couple have listed their 15,000-square-foot family compound on 35 acres in Cleveland, NC, for $3.95 million. The Deegans bought the property for $2.1 million in 2021.

This isn’t the pair’s first spin around the track with real estate. We’ve seen them sell a different mansion in North Carolina in 2020 and let go of a Southern California spread in the same year.

Fee hikes for new and existing agents are set to begin April 1 and come after a tumultuous 2022, when Real posted significant losses, the brokerage confirmed to Inman.

If you're looking to cut costs while building your business, this list offers plenty of areas to rethink, regroup and reduce spending.

The typical down payment for a homebuyer in the United States fell 10 percent between January 2022 and 2023, to $42,375, according to new data released Wednesday by Redfin.

A contracting market will place pressure on struggling startup entrepreneurs while some broker-owners use the down market as an opportunity to nail down a succession plan, analysts told Intel.

At a time when all eyes are seemingly on the fall of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, RealPage Chief Economist Jay Parsons is watching the impact of something else.

When it's time to rethink everything about your real estate marketing plan, how do you decide where to start?

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Reality star Kim Kardashian still needs buyer for her stylish Calabasas, CA, condo.

The three-bedroom home has been on and off the market over the last few years. The posh pad was listed once again last November, and Kardashian is holding firm on the $2.7 million price tag.

The 2,260-square-foot penthouse sits on the top floor of the luxury Avanti condo community. Reminiscent of an Italianate village, the 72-unit development was built in 2016.

Kardashian and her mother, Kris Jenner, purchased multiple condos in the luxury development before it was completed.

A Craftsman bungalow in Kaukauna, a rowhouse in Philadelphia and a midcentury ranch house in Florence.

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If you’re in the market for a home but are discouraged by the current high mortgage rates, you’ve probably heard the advice “buy now and refinance later”—maybe from your mortgage lender, real estate agent, or a well-meaning friend.

This seemingly simple solution might empower you to stretch your budget now, with the plan to refinance when mortgage rates drop.

But is “buy now, refinance later” the win-win it’s cracked up to be?

Let’s take a look at this homebuying strategy from all angles and explore the ways in which it could help—or hurt—buyers down the line.

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That question keeps boiling up to the surface, as buyers grapple with the current state of the housing market. High prices and soaring mortgage rates are driving affordability into the dirt. And lurking at the center of all buyer challenges is one towering and inescapable bugaboo: the lack of available homes. It’s simple math. Fewer homes = increased competition, higher prices, and epic levels of frustration.

Last year, new-home construction permits for single-family dwellings declined by about 14% over the previous year—and it’s hardly a new trend. Since the 1990s, U.S. housing starts per 1,000 households have been about half of what they were for the preceding 30 years. The building slowdown spiked in the wake of the 2008 housing crash, then again with the supply-side issues of the COVID-19 pandemic. The current shortfall in new construction is estimated to be as high as 6 million homes.

But not all corners of the U.S. are quite as new-home parched as others. There are still places where builders are putting up new homes to meet buyers’ demands, especially in more affordable areas where dollars stretch further. And Realtor.com® searched out those metros.

Most of these places are in the South, where land is more readily available, expensive building regulations are fewer, and prices aren’t as crazy as they are in states like California.

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Warm and lived-in, with a majestic fireplace, wood craftsmanship from another era, and a crooked old apple tree in a beautiful garden—only older homes come complete with their own personality.

But that distinctive personality could also come with a steep price in upkeep and renovations to meet the needs of your family and your modern tastes.

How do you decide if an older home is worth it? Consider our handy list of pros and cons:

Con: Outdated building code compliance and other maintenance

Homes with old heating systems or inefficient plumbing can be in such bad shape that they do not comply with modern building codes. A home with a crumbling foundation might frighten away most buyers.

Tim and Sue Soar have toiled for decades to maintain their medieval estate and not go broke. They can’t take it much longer. But will it sell?