This week’s available properties are in Chelsea, Cobble Hill and Midtown.

Did you know that in, April 2022, inflation accelerated at 8.3% higher than in April 2021, so that inflation remained close to 40-year highs? Additionally, core CPI (which excludes energy and food) rose 6.2%, and shelter costs rose at the fastest pace they have since 1991.

If you’re one of the first-time home buyers in the US, you might be feeling stressed about what inflation means for you. How do you know how this will impact buying a new home?

Fortunately, in this article, we’ll review what inflation means for you as a first-time home buyer. Finally, you can understand this economic concept so that you can find the right home for you. Read on to learn more.

What Is Inflation?

Before we review how inflation impacts home buyers buying their first home, we’ll go over what inflation is. This is a process that occurs when prices increase over time. As a consumer, this means that the money you currently possess is worth a little less than when you originally possessed this money.

For this reason, as a consumer, seeing inflation isn’t something you want. However, if you zoom out and look at this in a more macro way, some inflation is a good thing.

Finding your dream house can be an arduous process, but it doesn’t necessarily have to be. Likewise, putting your home up on the market can be nerve-wracking, especially if you’re hoping to get the best price you can. In both situations, one of the best tools out there to connect buyers to sellers is the tried-and-true open house, a traditional approach that’s often led to great results for house hunters and property sellers alike. 

But open houses can be a lot of work, and this goes for not just organizing a home and getting ready to show it but also for buyers to get all the information about a home they’re looking at. That’s why we’ve come up with a great collection of open house tips for both home buyers and home sellers to help you get ready for your own open house.

Open House Tips for Home Buyers

Let’s face it: looking through MLS sites is a great place to start when it comes to a house hunting journey, but even a property with the most attractive listing with dozens of beautiful pictures isn’t going to be enough to convince you whether this property is the one for you. You need to see it in person, walk around the space, and get a feel for the home with you standing inside it – and that’s exactly what an open house offers you the opportunity to experience. That is, of course, if you approach your open houses with the right things in mind.

There are plenty of open houses from which to choose, though, and trying to squeeze in as many as possible is going to just leave you exhausted and unable to make any kind of choices or evaluations. When scheduling open house visits, limit yourself to just one or two a day, make sure they’re all in close proximity to each other, and leave yourself plenty of time to explore each property and ask questions of the real estate agents you meet there. Finally, make sure you spend some time looking learning about the neighborhood itself and finding out information about local school districts. Even if you don’t have kids, this can be a great indicator of the overall quality of the neighborhood.

Open House Tips for Home Sellers

Home sellers have their work cut out for themselves when it comes to staging a property for an open house. You’ve got to ensure that the home looks warm and inviting, isn’t overly cluttered, and, of course, is clean and spotless. If you’ve already moved out, consider investing in a home staging service to dress the property so that prospective house hunters don’t have to imagine what the property would look like with furnishings. Yes, it’s an added expense, but if it helps sell your home faster – and at a higher price – such an investment is obviously worth it.

In this week’s video column, @properties Christie’s International Real Estate executives Amy Corr and Kevin Van Eck discuss how to recruit a new team to your brokerage and set them up for success.

Aggressive sales tactics are not for everyone. Coach Darryl Davis offers his best advice for launching softer, gentler prospecting strategies for your team

Tech is taking over design in the luxury market, according to Realtor and tech expert Brandon Doyle. Tour this smart home to see what you've been missing.

This week the spotlight shines on three award-winning South Florida luxury real estate trailblazers.

With interest rates at 5 percent, borrowers could pay thousands in extra costs over the lifetime of a 30-year home loan, a report shows.

In a competitive marketplace, more than ever, buyers turn to experts in the field for creative, confidence-inducing solutions. Find ways to be the broker people think of when looking for answers. 

It’s getting hairy out there for homebuilders as construction leaders report that buyers are losing interest in pricy new properties now that mortgage rates have climbed, according to a new survey.

Our shift to Anywhere underscores our dedication to transforming the home buying and selling experience, alongside our powerful agent network and franchise owners, for any consumer, anywhere.

A report found overall residential lending to be down 32 percent between the first quarters of 2021 and 2022, with refinancing lending dropping 22 percent and mortgages dipping 18 percent.

Homeowner equity grew by 32.2 percent in the past year as the number of borrowers underwater on their mortgages fell to a new low. California, Hawaii and Washington led the way.

As Fed embarks on "quantitative tightening," interest rates could come under renewed pressure.

Move has acquired real estate agent marketplace UpNest for an undisclosed amount. UpNest will be used to bolster Realtor.com's buyer and seller services, the company said.

New whistleblower lawsuit claims Vishal Garg made misstatements 'all aimed at duping investors and shareholders' amid quest to bring Better public.

A man, possibly operating under a pseudonym, has been harassing women in real estate online and on phone calls for the past two years. He has been the subject of several complaints across the country, in New Jersey, Ohio, Virginia and California.

Here’s how to identify this fast-spreading invasive weed — and what to do about it, if you find it on your property.

Homeowner plaintiffs allege Realogy uses its corporate structure to profit from and escape liability for letting its agents violate the law through "incessant unwanted telemarketing calls."

You might have a job or a business to take care of. Your busy life might not allow visiting your rental property often and ensure its proper management. This can lead to several structural and cosmetic issues in your rental property like cracked ceilings and pest infestation – a big turn-off for potential tenants. This could translate to monetary losses in the long run and followed by frustration.

Property management companies can take care of your rental property as you would, or maybe better. Here are ten reasons why hiring property management companies for your rental property makes sense. 

Wider Tenant Pool 

When you work with a property management company, you have access to their tenant pool. This is in addition to the tenants that might apply when you advertise your rental property independently.

A good management company will screen the tenants thoroughly and pick those likely to take good care of your property and pay rent on time. This gives you peace of mind knowing that your property is in good hands.

Saves You Time

You might have to work long hours or frequently travel for work. This can leave you with very little time to focus on your rental property. A property management company will take care of everything related to your rental property so that you can focus on other important things in your life.