ATTOM: In second quarter 2023, 49% of U.S. mortgaged residential properties were considered equity-rich – the highest point in at least four years.

Idalia caused flooding in communities along Fla.’s west coast before making landfill in rural Taylor County, but some say the insurance industry “dodged a bullet.”

As of Sept. 1, Citizens had nearly 1.38M policies – making it Florida’s largest property insurer, though it was created as the state’s “insurer of last resort.”

Faced with market fluctuations, many broker-owners are offering additional services like home staging to satisfy clients and strengthen their bottom line.

To avoid future family fights, parents leaving a treasured holiday home to kids and grandkids should consider ownership, management, and usage – as well as costs.

Agents can use MAXA and Canva for graphic design help. Brokers may also provide templates or training on graphic design platforms for consistency in branding.

The fed disaster declaration now covers Columbia, Gilchrist, Hernando, Jefferson, Madison, Pasco, Citrus, Dixie, Hamilton, Lafayette, Levy, Suwannee and Taylor counties.

Fla. Insurance Commissioner’s order prevents insurers from cancelling or issuing non-renewals of customers’ policies until Oct. 31 in areas affected by Hurricane Idalia.

Residents of the small, rural areas of the state’s “Nature Coast” fear the high costs of rebuilding will price them out and they’ll lose their “old Florida” way of life.

Feeling more optimistic about their personal finances, Floridians’ consumer sentiment inched up eight-tenths of a point in August to 67.6 from July’s revised 66.8.

Agents can help buyers and sellers see them as a local expert on YouTube by creating market and trend update videos, video walkthroughs of properties and more.

The median U.S. asking rent in July was $2,038, just $16 below the record high set in August 2022. But that asking rent was up just 0.3% from a year earlier in July.

Agents offer buyers and sellers their market expertise, but that expertise can quickly become stale in a fast-changing RE market without regular educational updates.

Survey: 12% of U.S. homeowners don’t have property insurance. About half of them have household incomes of $40K or less and say they can’t afford it.

Georgia Institute of Technology: A before/after study of new affordable housing found that it didn’t harm nearby home values – and in some cases, it raised them.

Two Fla. agencies will receive $425K each – one in C. Fla., one in the Palm Beaches – for fair housing testing and enforcement to eliminate discriminatory practices.

Pres. Biden declared seven Fla. counties disaster areas, but Gov. DeSantis thinks more will be added. A declaration opens up additional aid, including more fed funding.

The order includes Citrus, Dixie, Hamilton, Lafayette, Levy, Suwannee and Taylor counties and clears the way for federal funds to aid in their recovery.

While FEMA may still be given additional funding, these strategies can help Hurricane Idalia survivors get federal aid faster.

After hitting a 20-year high last week of 7.23%, the average rate on a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage moved lower again. A year ago, the FRM averaged 5.66%.