(MCT)—More Americans are signing contracts to buy existing homes than at any time in nearly two years, boosting the housing industry’s slow recovery, according to the National Association of REALTORS®’ index of pending home sales. The measure is up 2 percent to 97 in January after slipping 1.9 percent in December. The index of deals [...]

Recently, the longtime personal residence of NBA legend Michael Jordan in Highland Park, Illinois, was presented for sale by Katherine Chez Malkin and will be marketed globally by Luxury Portfolio International. With an asking price of $29 million, the secluded compound offers over 56,000 square feet of livable space on three levels; including nine bedrooms, [...]

(MCT)—The U.S. housing market disappointed Warren Buffett last year, but he hasn’t given up hope. Buffett said in his annual shareholder letter, posted this weekend, that he was “dead wrong” when he predicted last year that the rebound in U.S. home prices would begin within a year. This year, though, he’s betting again that the [...]

(MCT)—As interest rates have slid over the past couple of years, Gabriel Bousbib of Englewood, N.J., refinanced his 15-year mortgage not once, but twice—cutting his interest rate in two steps from about 4.6 percent to 3.375 percent. He’s one of a number of homeowners who refinanced just a year or two ago, but decided it [...]

(MCT)—Renters often hear jeers that they’re paying somebody else’s mortgage. They feel pressure to escape rent increases and take advantage of low home prices last seen a decade ago. But a home still may be a stretch financially. And prices may decline further, embittering new owners who see their prized asset lose value. For most, [...]

The handshake gesture has been used by many cultures over the years and is depicted in Greek carving dating from the 5th century BC. The handshake is traditionally used by people around the planet as a gesture of greeting, departure, offering congratulations, or finalizing a business transition. In sports, a handshake after the game between [...]

Pending home sales are on an upward trend, which has been uneven but meaningful since reaching a cyclical low last April, and are well above a year ago, according to the National Association of REALTORS®. The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings, rose 2.0 percent to 97.0 in January from [...]

A new National Association of REALTORS® collaboration with the U.S. Department of the Treasury will help REALTORS® better assist homeowners who are struggling to sell their homes in a short sale. REALTORS® who attend upcoming Making Home Affordable “Help for Homeowners” outreach events, sponsored by the Treasury Department, will learn insights to help them navigate [...]

Increasingly more people are looking to renting as an affordable, flexible lifestyle option, causing apartment vacancies to fall to their lowest point in 10 years. Reis reported that the apartment vacancy rate dropped to 5.2 percent in Q4 of 2011, down from their reports of 5.6 percent in Q3 of 2011. This higher demand for [...]

Existing-home sales rose in January, marking three gains in the past four months, while inventories continued to improve, according to the National Association of Realtors®. Total existing-home sales, which are completed transactions that include single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops, increased 4.3 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.57 million in January from [...]