Homes for Sale in Brooklyn and Manhattan

This week’s properties are in Williamsburg, the Financial district and Gramercy Park.

The Oscar for Best House Goes to …

The most popular houses from the movies, based on internet search interest.

The Oscar for Best House Goes to …

The most popular houses from the movies, based on internet search interest.

Tract Home vs. Spec Home vs. Custom Home: Here Are the Key Differences

Edwin Remsberg via Getty Images

Buying a newly constructed home is exciting, but there are a lot of different options. Finding the right home style is important, whether it’s a custom-built house on a plot of land you just bought or a move-in ready home in a brand-new, cookie-cutter neighborhood.

Tract, spec, and custom homes have their differences, and understanding these differences can better inform your homebuying decision.

“Understanding the differences in home type is as essential as understanding your true costs, from monthly mortgage payments to insurance to electric bills. Home type needs to be matched to your preferences and budget with a long-term perspective,” says Megan Fox at Compass.

Each type of home might fit better with a certain type of buyer. Which build you choose ultimately comes down to buyer preference, budget, and stage of life. Here are some things to know about the main types of new-home construction.

tract homes


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Exclusive: Inside Chelsea and Cole DeBoer’s Rise From ‘Teen Mom’ Stars to HGTV Designers on ‘Down Home Fab’

HGTV

Chelsea DeBoer might be best known for starring on “Teen Mom 2,” but now this married mother of four is all grown up—and gaining fame as a designer on her HGTV breakout hit, “Down Home Fab.”

On this new series (recently renewed for a second season), Chelsea and her husband, Cole, renovate homes around Sioux Falls, SD, using a unique style Chelsea describes as “South Dakota glam.”

It’s lots of cowhides, black paint, and even skull-patterned wallpaper. Yet her offbeat ideas often work—or at least, her clients seem pleased with the results.

Curious to hear more about how she’s shaking up the design world, we chatted with Chelsea about how she got started down the home renovation path and what she’s learned along the way.

Chelsea and Cole
Chelsea and Cole
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How to maintain a boutique feel as your brokerage expands

Growth is great, but a business is only as strong as its foundation. As you scale up, continue to prioritize the things that matter most — your clients, your team and your brand.

Would $650,000 Buy a House in San Diego? One Couple Tested Their Budget.

Looking to put down roots in a new city, a naval officer and his husband considered various purchase plans after their rental apartment became too expensive. Here were their options.

Broker Spotlight: Lyles Geer, William Means Real Estate

Learn how this Charleston, South Carolina, broker puts his own unique stamp on family tradition at William Means Real Estate.

AI will upend content marketing. 4 ways to stay ahead of the curve

Focus on creating high-quality pieces that resonate with your target audience and meet their evolving needs. With the right approach, you can stay ahead of the curve in the age of AI-powered search engines.

Gary Keller’s 6 steps for doing more in today’s market

In this shifting market, agents will have to do more to achieve the same results they were getting before, writes Adam Hergenrother. Here, he breaks down Gary Keller’s formula for doing more and how you can take action to do more and achieve more this year.

LoanDepot losses mount as company continues to shed workers

The beleaguered mortgage lender racks up a $610.4 million 2022 net loss despite cutting 6,100 jobs as rising mortgage rates cut into the company's lucrative refinancing business.

4 Buzzy Gardening Trends We Can’t Wait To Try This Spring

Getty Images

With the promise of warm weather on the horizon, our thoughts naturally go to the great outdoors—and the day when we can soon get our hands dirty in the garden.

If you’re as excited about exercising your green thumb as we are, then you’ll be interested to learn that some of 2023’s biggest gardening trends are anything but ordinary. In fact, if you’re inspired by the idea of experimenting with color and texture in your outdoor space, we have quite a lineup for you. While some of these trends reflect major pop culture moments (“Bridgerton,” anyone?), others are a response to important issues, including climate change and growing food costs.

Ready to turn over a new leaf in your yard? Read on.

1. Immersive gardens





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Downtown L.A. Home With Zombie-Movie Roots Is Anything but Scary for $7M

Realtor.com

If you’re into urban-chic style, you’ll go crazy for this $7 million residence-gallery-event space property in the fast-beating heart of downtown Los Angeles.

It’s not exactly your stereotypical, lushly landscaped, luxury L.A. home, though.

In fact, the space is mostly surround by warehouses, parking lots, and rail yards.

But it does have that gritty, cool, industrial vibe that makes most downtown dwellers feel right at home. Plus, it’s adjacent to the trendy artist community known as the Brewery, which anchors the downtown L.A. arts scene.










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What is a short sale?

A short sale in real estate refers to a situation where a homeowner sells their property for less than the outstanding balance on their mortgage loan. This is typically done as a last resort when the homeowner is unable to continue making mortgage payments and is facing the possibility of foreclosure. In a short sale, the homeowner must obtain appr...


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Florida top producers Adam Levy and John D’Amico join Compass

The agents join Compass from Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices and boast at least 25 years of experience in the industry, Compass exclusively told Inman.

Adorable Antique: Built in 1700, a Cute Cape in New York Is This Week’s Oldest Home

Realtor.com

A cute, Cape-style home in Yorktown Heights, NY, is the oldest property to hit the market this week on Realtor.com®.

The cozy house features a Dutch door, an original fireplace, and a first-floor primary suite with a claw-foot tub. Modernizations include an updated kitchen with soapstone countertops and a restored farmhouse sink.

Other vintage dwellings to hit the market this week include an equestrian farmhouse in New Jersey, an affordable home with a brick silo in Connecticut, and a stone farmhouse in Pennsylvania.

Scroll down for a full look at this week’s 10 oldest homes.











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Mortgage rates headed past 7% after Powell warns Congress on inflation

Futures markets are taking the Fed chair at his word that policymakers may have to hike rates faster and take them higher to combat inflation

4 more US senators call for DOJ probe of RealPage over rent hikes

Sens. Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, Tina Smith and Edward Markey said they investigated rental data firm RealPage and call for more scrutiny of the company’s role in nationwide rent growth.

When ‘After’ Is Worse Than ‘Before’: Why Some Millennials Skew Toward Icky Renovations

Photo courtesy of True Life Design Co via Houzz

We get it. Finally landing your own home and putting a personal stamp on the decor is a big thrill.

But in the heat of the excitement, some younger buyers might do well to slow down and think things through a bit. Otherwise, the situation can quickly devolve to “bye-bye, charm; hello, boring” factory finishes and gallons of greige paint.

Of course, buying a home is a big, expensive deal. And there might not be enough money left for a complete and thoughtful renovation. But that doesn’t have to spell cringeworthy results.

So if you’re about to pull the trigger on a home remodel, be warned that diving headfirst into aggressive demos and trendy designs can be risky. Here are some common mistakes new homeowners make when renovating their spaces.






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Federal consumer watchdog flags mortgage servicers’ junk fees

The CFPB alleges mortgage servicers charged excessive late fees, assessed "fake" private mortgage insurance premiums and made homeowners pay for unnecessary inspections.

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