Want two, inescapable signs that electronic signatures have arrived? Sign #1: The new, 2011 – 2012 standard Minnesota Purchase Agreement* now includes language stating that electronic signatures shall be acceptable for all residential real estate contracts and addenda (it’s buried in the fine print, just after the Integration Clause). Sign #2: The National Association of Realtors (“NAR”) is an...Read More
Fewer Realtors = Less Lobbying Clout Want to know another reason why the mortgage interest deduction for homeowners is in jeopardy as never before? It’s not just because the budget deficit is ballooning, prompting policymakers to look for novel ways to raise revenue (although that’s certainly true). And it’s not because the philosophical case for the deduction —...Read More
Maybe Madoff Can Be a Judge NAR economists promised to study the [issue of overstated housing sales] during a December conference call that included economists from the Mortgage Bankers Association, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, the Federal Reserve, the Federal Housing Finance Agency and CoreLogic. –“Home Sales Data Doubted“; The Wall Street Journal (2/22/11) One of the real...Read More
Missing Voices One of the oddities — at least to me — about selling real estate these days is to peruse Op-Ed pages full of people with opinions about the “true state” of the housing market, its future direction — and what should be done to fix it. Print journalists (there’s an anachronism). Economists. Government...Read More
800,000 Part-Time Realtors According to the National Association of Realtors, 80% of Realtors handled 3 or fewer transactions last year. That prompts the following observations, in no particular order: –There are still too many Realtors out there (something like one million-plus).–A core group of Realtors (the 20%) are becoming increasingly dominant.–The clients of so-called part-time...Read More
“30 Under 30?” How About “50 Over 50??” The overwhelming question that arises from the 82nd Annual Academy Awards goes like this: what level of respect should we accord to an industry that finds a place onstage for Miley Cyrus, but not for Lauren Bacall? Resplendent and omniscient, sat Ms. Bacall, long since blessed with...Read More
