Summit Realty Group's Blog

Daily Real Estate News  |  March 21, 2008Real Estate TV has Plenty of FansThe real estate market may have cooled, but real estate TV is as hot as ever.HGTV had its highest prime-time ratings ever in January. Nine of its top 10 series deal with the housing market, including "House Hunters," "My Fi...

Daily Real Estate News  |  March 21, 2008Some Commissions Rise as Sales SlowSuccessful real estate professionals in some parts of the country are charging as much as 8 percent in commission, and some builders, eager to get rid of inventory, are offering 10 percent or more.J. Patrick Lashinsky, pr...

Daily Real Estate News  |  March 21, 2008Home Sales Still Strong in Key AreasThe housing slowdown isn't being felt in some of the most desirable areas of the country.For instance, in Ross, Calif., about 18 miles north of San Francisco, real estate practitioner Tracy McLaughlin says, "It's supply ...

Daily Real Estate News  |  March 21, 2008Ex-Con Admits Killing Real Estate ProAn ex-convict admitted during his arraignment Thursday that he strangled a real estate practitioner who showed him a house in the small town of Cambridge, Wis.James A. Hole, 34, of Brookfield, Ill., told the Jefferson C...

Daily Real Estate News  |  March 21, 2008Mortgage Rates Drop Below 6%According to Freddie Mac's data, mortgage rates have dropped back below 6 percent after spending more than a month above that threshold. Thanks to the Federal Reserve's aggressive moves to insulate the U.S. economy by slashing b...

Daily Real Estate News  |  March 20, 2008Building Permits, Starts Fall in FebruaryBuilding permits fell 7.8 percent in February to the lowest level in 16 years, the U.S. Commerce Department said Wednesday. Overall, housing starts declined 0.6 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.065 ...

Daily Real Estate News  |  March 20, 2008The Nation's Best Cities for BusinessDoing business in the United States is challenging these days, but locating in the right city can make life easier. Forbes magazine has for the tenth year in a row ranked the 200 largest metro areas according to their b...

Daily Real Estate News  |  March 20, 2008Interest Rate Cuts Help ARM Holders The Federal Reserve's rate cuts aren't doing much to lower mortgage rate for new buyers, but they could help holders of existing adjustable rate mortgages.Rates on home-equity lines of credit, credit cards and auto loans...

Daily Real Estate News  |  March 20, 2008Home Sellers Resort to Weird Deals Frustrated home sellers are trying an array of techniques to sell their slow-moving homes.In Colorado, J.J. Rodgers has launched an essay contest. So far, she has received more than 500 essays - accompanied by a $100 entr...

Daily Real Estate News  |  March 20, 2008Practitioners Dig Up New RevenueRather than flee the real estate industry due to the housing downturn, experts say real estate practitioners should use their skills and experience to offer services outside of buying and selling homes to supplement their in...