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[ad_1] This article is part of our HousingWire 2022 forecast series. After the series wraps early next year, join us on February 8 for the HW+ Virtual 2022 Forecast Event. Bringing together some of the top economists and researchers in housing, the event will provide an in-depth look at the predictions for next year, along with a roundtable discussion on how these insights apply to your business. The event is exclusively for HW+ members, and you can go here to register. Some 15 years ago, real estate agents had only a few choices when deciding which real estate business model to choose. Today, the choices are abundant. From virtual, capped models to low-fee and discount, agents can pick the company that best fits their needs. Because of that, and several other reasons, gross margins for real estate brokerage firms are declining with no real end in sight. In 2015, according to RealTrends data, gross margins were at 16.4% for the largest brokerage companies in the United States. Now, they’re at 13.5% for 2020, down from 13.8% only one year ago. This is an average for a variety of business models, with some models trending lower and some higher. Why is this happening? The first cause of the decline is the growth in competition for productive agents and a variety of new brokerages. “Another factor is that leading market-share brokerage firms now get as much, or more, of their earnings from mortgage, title insurance and other core settlement services,” Steve Murray, senior advisor to RealTrends, said. “As such, their strategies often go to capturing share of the brokerage business, not just for the sake of brokerage profitability, but to drive transactional volume and profitability through these related services,” he added. This will drive the real estate brokerage of the future. A brokerage where core services are no longer value add-ons, but fundamental to the health of the firm. Here are some trends we’re seeing in the real estate brokerage industry. Emerging new business models The one-stop shop of today will continue to evolve as consumer demand for an easier, less stressful transaction increases. There has been an explosion of companies offering financing solutions such as bridge loans, iBuying and more. Companies such as Zillow, Refin, Opendoor, Offerpad, Knock.com and Ribbon have put a new spin on financing services that have been around for more than 30 years. These companies have come up with innovative marketing and new delivery methods. Consumers are demanding more from real estate companies, including a mix of these services. “I think it’s a foregone conclusion that leading brokers are going to need to retrain agents on these financing services, much as they did 10 to 12 years ago to deal with distressed inventory and short sales,” Murray said. It will require a whole new skill level and different level of service to compete. Leading brokers will need to embed these financing services into the base services that all their agents are encouraged to offer. “Partnering with other companies to offer them suffices. But we think that leading brokerage companies, or market-share leaders, will need to incorporate and embed these services in their everyday offerings to buyers and sellers,” Murray said. With that, comes a whole new level of skill, implementation and training. Segmentation in the industry The growth of teams and concentration of more market share among fewer agents may also cause a decline in gross margins. “The competition for productive agents will not cease in the years ahead and gross margins will continue to be under pressure and tend to decline further in this environment,” Murray said, which leads to segmentation in real estate brokerage. In the past, most brokerage firms were either a graduated commission plan, traditional independent, a 100% commission concept franchise or a 100% commission plan, flat-fee independent. Now, there’s an explosion of teams and new models, including salaried agents and virtual capped models. The agent offerings of traditional brokerage — technology, market-ing, office space, managerial oversight, deal doctoring, coaching, mentoring — once attracted about 60% to 70% of agents who chose these companies as a place to hang their licenses. In the current market, with so many options, including numerous low-cost brokerage companies that charge either a monthly fee or a transaction fee, as well as online access to technology and marketing templates, there is a lot more competition. “Combined, these companies, including eXp Realty, Fathom Realty, United Real Estate, Real Brokerage and others, now have about 150,000 to 180,000 Realtors associated with them,” Murray said. In addition, Murray said, “Many new agents join a team, not necessarily a brokerage company.” The market is segmenting as never before. So, it’s important for real estate brokerage companies to avoid being caught in the middle without a clear differentiation in what they’re offering. What does that mean? Are you a Walmart or Amazon, or are you a Tiffanys or Neiman Marcus? Murray explained that the agents you used to appeal to are fragmented, so you must define what you offer and understand “that the audience for that may not be as big as what it once was.” In the coming years, it will be more important than ever to clearly define your brokerage’s value proposition, expand into core services and thoughtfully recruit agents. Real estate is still about relationships — with consumers and agents. Your offerings and value proposition should reflect that. This article was first featured in the Dec/Jan HousingWire Magazine issue. To read the full issue, go here. The post Have you clearly defined your brokerage’s value proposition? appeared first on HousingWire. [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] We had a Christmas Cookie Baking Night as a family — everyone chose which cookie they wanted to bake and then we all baked the cookie we chose. Guess what I made? Yes — the World’s Easiest Christmas Candy. (This stuff is so addictive and delicious!) My friend, Kate, handed down this walker to Baby D and he LOVES it! He especially enjoyed scooting around the Christmas tree. We went out driving around looking at Christmas lights one night as a family. Jesse and I went to a Christmas Party for other local foster families. The girls made food for our All Day Family Christmas celebration. Kaitlynn did the Cinnamon Rolls this year. She used our family favorite recipe. All Day Family Christmas (which we celebrated on December 21 before we left for Kansas) started with Cinnamon Rolls, Sausage, and Orange Juice for breakfast. The obligatory pics before gifts! (Our good friend, Isabel, joined us for the morning.) Kierstyn got a Duplo set and she was SO excited about it! Baby D loved playing with it, too! The next morning, we loaded up early and left for the 11-ish hour drive to Wichita, KS to spend Christmas with both of our families. We stopped at Lambert’s on the way! Baby D was mesmerized by everything on the ceiling and walls. Kierstyn was excited about the hot rolls and butter! We made it to Springfield, MO and stayed overnight there. One of Kierstyn’s very favorite things about hotels is getting up early for the hotel breakfast! We found a local coffee shop to stop at before we headed on the road. (We love trying out new local coffee shops when traveling!) And we also stopped at a crepe shop that came highly recommended to us. The two crepes were enough for all of us to share since they were so sweet and filling! Our first stop in Wichita? Braum’s for burgers and fries!! Our hotel has a little kitchen in it and I made some casseroles for brunch the next day at my family’s house as soon as we got in. It reminded me of cooking in our little basement apartment galley kitchen. I made Copycat Cracker Barrel Hashbrown Casserole. And Sausage, Egg, and Cheese Casserole. Working on a LEGO set at the hotel. The sunset the next morning was gorgeous. Of course we had to hit up the hotel breakfast buffet first thing in the morning. And then it was off to Grandma and Grandpa’s house for brunch. Look at the little feet on his jammies!! One of the highlights of Christmas was getting to meet my brand-new nephew (my brother’s first son!) My Dad had a treasure hunt for the kids to find their gifts this year, like usual. Christmas morning: headed to the hotel breakfast! We introduced Kierstyn to Kinder Joys on this trip! Patiently waiting for Christmas gifts! Kierstyn wanted to “help” everyone unwrap their gifts. Playing Exploding Kittens after gifts. After spending Christmas morning with Jesse’s family, we headed over to my family’s house for Christmas lunch. We did a White Elephant Gift Exchange this year. And then it was back to Jesse’s family’s house for dinner, games, and stockings. (Yes, that’s Kathrynne all decked out there opening up her stocking!) My 10 Goals for This Week In reviewing what worked and what didn’t work in 2021 and what I want to change and do differently in 2022, one thing that kept coming up was the fact that I didn’t set weekly goals. I will write more on what I learned from this in an upcoming post, but for now, I’m excited to be bringing them back every week for the accountability and focus it gives me. So, here are my goals for this week… (Note: We are traveling most of this week, so my goals will look differently than if we were at home.) Personal Goals Make a Spotify playlist with my favorite uplifting songs. Delete 5000 photos and videos from my phone. Reading Goals Finish reading Pray Confidently and Consistently. Finish reading The Story of You. Family Goals Have a family Game Night. Go on a date with Jesse. Business/Blogging Goals Write a post with my Goals for 2022. Write a post on my Top Books Read in 2021. Book Goals Read 10 chapters + intro and epilogue aloud to Jesse. Write 3000 words for the end sections of the book. [ad_2] Source link

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[ad_1] IDAM House Of Brands has acquired MeeSoGood, a chocolate and coffee brand. With this acquisition, IDAM House Of Brands is aiming to achieve global recognition for MeeSoGood, along with creating a whole new experience for premium chocolate and coffee enthusiasts at affordable prices. The brand has already adopted several methodologies across different verticals to achieve its vision, it said in a statement. Currently, IDAM House Of Brands holds 60% stakes in MeeSoGood. “With this acquisition, IDAM has taken its first step into the food and beverage industry. Aakash and I are excited about this venture, given the fact that we share a similar vision with MeeSoGood where we inculcate a consumer-first approach and a commitment to make premium products at affordable prices all across the globe,” Saahil Nayar, co-founder and COO, IDAM House Of Brands, said.Husband-wife duo Vivek Chaturvedi and his wife Deepali Chaturvedi started MeeSoGood. The brand has a variety of flavoured chocolates and coffee. The brand aims to craft chocolates and coffee and become the frontrunner of an industry that offers either premium products at exorbitant prices or below average products at affordable prices, it said in a statement. “Being a chocolate and coffee connoisseur, I had noticed a lack of products that are of premium quality yet affordable for the masses. Further, with the help of IDAM House Of Brands and its expertise, we look forward to taking our homegrown brand and its premium range of products to consumers all around the world,” Vivek Chaturvedi, co-founder, MeeSoGood, said. Read Also: Eximius Ventures launches gaming syndicate ‘The Gaming Lounge’ Follow us on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] This article is part of our HousingWire 2022 forecast series. After the series wraps early next year, join us on February 8 for the HW+ Virtual 2022 Forecast Event. Bringing together some of the top economists and researchers in housing, the event will provide an in-depth look at the predictions for next year, along with a roundtable discussion on how these insights apply to your business. The event is exclusively for HW+ members, and you can go here to register. It didn’t take long for mortgage servicers to realize they had a historic challenge on their hands. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, over 22 million Americans lost their jobs between January 2020 and April 2020, the highest level since the Great Depression. Manufacturing production declined to the lowest level since 1946 and new home construction saw the biggest decline in nearly 40 years. Servicers and politicians were both quick to say they would handle the economic crisis differently than the recession just over a decade ago, in which foreclosures were rampant. Forbearance strategies were negotiated with over 4 million borrowers, evictions were banned and strict guidelines on communiques with borrowers were established in the hopes of avoiding another national housing crisis. Servicers to date have risen to the occasion, investing in technology and hiring thousands of employees. They have massively reduced the number of forbearances in the 18 months since the CARES Act was passed. But the real test is yet to come: Most forbearance plans only just began expiring in September. Marina Walsh, the vice president of industry analysis for the Mortgage Bankers Association, is optimistic about the post-forbearance landscape. “The important item here is that we have a lot more tools in our toolkit for borrowers now than during the Great Recession,” she said. Half of the borrowers exiting forbearance are using deferrals or partial claims (until the pandemic, the option was only available during natural disasters), or are continuing their monthly payments even during forbearance, according to the MBA data. Meanwhile, as of October, close to 17% did not make all their monthly payments and exited forbearance without a loss mitigation plan. “That’s the group we’re going to be watching,” said Walsh. She added that not all of them will go through foreclosure proceedings because servicers are still formalizing post-forbearance plans. Some of these borrowers, of course, will not recover. “Going into 2022, assuming that the CARES Act does come to a conclusion, there will likely be more customers that could proceed to foreclosure than in 2020 and 2021,” said Perry Hilzendeger, president of servicing at Homepoint. Hilzendeger said that customers had not regained their pre-pandemic income levels in some unfortunate situations. “They may not qualify for loss mitigation plans because they don’t have enough income now to support the house that they’re in,” he said. The number of borrowers who are delinquent on their mortgages — an indicator of future foreclosures — has also steadily declined. According to CoreLogic, the delinquency rate on all mortgages fell to 4.2% in July, a 2.3% drop year over year. Serious delinquencies, in which payments are 90 days or more past due, also fell to 2.8% in July, the lowest level since May 2020. Contributing to servicers’ optimistic forecast is the labor market recovery. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics found that there were 7.7 million unemployed people in September, compared to 23 million in June 2020. In addition, according to Black Knight, home-owners had $9 trillion in tappable home equity in the second quarter of 2021, a 37% increase year over year that was driven by spiking home prices. Edward Fay, CEO at Fay Servicing, said that the delinquency rate is closely tied to unemployment and home prices — the expectation is that it will decline as the economy roars back. “Home prices are way up, so people can sell their homes in a position where they’re defaulting and still walk with cash, and people are now working and can pay their mortgages again,” he said. The big concern for servicers in the next 12 months is with regulators, notably the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, now under the stewardship of Rohit Chopra. Over the last year, the agency has been stern with servicers who are negotiating forbearance exits with borrowers. It ordered servicers to be proactive, evaluate income “fairly,” assist borrowers with limited English proficiency, handle inquiries promptly and prevent “avoidable” foreclosures. “Our first priority is ensuring struggling families get the assistance they need,” Dave Uejio, the former act-ing director of the CFPB, said in April. “Servicers who put struggling families first have nothing to fear from our oversight, but we will hold accountable those who cause harm to homeowners and families.” Another regulator, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, has also taken an interest in mortgage servicing. In October, the OCC issued a consent order against Cenlar FSB, the nation’s second-largest mortgage servicer, over “unsafe or unsound practices” regarding its internal controls and risk management practices. “There are so many different regulatory agencies that are putting out their own rules. Servicers have to understand them while trying to figure out what’s best for the customer,” said Fay. Walsh said all the warning signs are there for servicers to “Follow the rules because there are those that are watching,” she said. “Having risk management controls in place is going to be important.” This article was first featured in the Dec/Jan HousingWire Magazine issue. To read the full issue, go here. The post Servicers prepare to handle forbearance exits appeared first on HousingWire. [ad_2] Source link

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[ad_1] Hyderabad has been ranked 128th in a global list in terms of appreciation in housing prices, according to Knight Frank India. The Turkish city of Izmir is at the first position with the highest growth rate of 34.8 per cent, followed by Wellington in New Zealand at 33.5 per cent. In its latest report Global Residential Cities Index Q3 2021, Knight Frank said that residential price across the 150 cities worldwide increased at an annual average of 10.6 per cent YoY in Q3 2021. This is recorded as the fastest residential price growth rate since Q1 2005. Hyderabad has been ranked 128th with 2.5 per cent year-on-year (YoY) rise in home prices. On domestic level, Hyderabad recorded the highest residential appreciation amongst the Indian cities. Chennai ranked 131st globally with residential price appreciation of 2.2 per cent. Kolkata ranked 135th and Ahmedabad at 139th with a price appreciation of 1.5 per cent and 0.4 per cent respectively in the residential asset class. Mumbai was the lowest-ranked Indian city with a global ranking of 146th on the index, registering a decline of 1.8 per cent in home prices. Bengaluru ranked 140th with a decline of 0.2 per cent YoY, followed by Delhi at 142nd rank with a decline of 0.7 per cent YoY, Pune ranked 144th with a fall of 1.5 per cent in rates. The Global Residential Cities Index tracks the movement in mainstream residential prices across 150 cities worldwide using official statistics. [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] The post How to Convert a Visa Gift Card to Cash appeared first on Millennial Money. Kaite just got a $100 Visa gift card for a graduation present. While she’s appreciative of the gift, she’d much rather have cash than a prepaid plastic card.  Sound familiar? This is a common issue that Visa gift card holders often face. Fortunately, when it comes to converting your reloadable Visa gift card to cash, there are plenty of options.  Keep reading to learn how to liquidate a Visa gift card and change it to cold, hard cash.  How to Convert a Visa Gift Card to Cash Here’s how to convert a Visa gift card to cash. Vist an ATM Use your prepaid card like cash Sell your card Buy money orders Buy and flip products Add money to your PayPal or Venmo account Sell your card to someone you know Invest the money Re-gift the card 1. Visit an ATM The fastest way to liquidate a Visa gift card is to visit an ATM. Simply visit an accredited ATM and deposit the card into the machine to make a cash transaction.  Yes, you may have to pay fees this way. But you’ll walk away with cash that you can use anywhere that cash is accepted. You won’t have to wait several business days for the money to clear. 2. Use your prepaid card like cash  You don’t need to liquidate a Visa gift card to use it for everyday transactions. For example, you can use this card to pay bills like utilities, food, and housing costs. Simply enter the information when making a payment and the items will be deducted from your Visa gift card balance.  You can also use it at stores like Walmart, Home Depot, and your local supermarket. 3. Sell your card Want to get rid of your card altogether? Visit sites like Prepaid2Cash and CardCash to liquidate prepaid cards. These sites can transform prepaid cards from Visa, MasterCard gift cards, and cards from other leading merchants like Best Buy, Nike, and Target, to name just a few examples.  You might also want to look into doing the same on Craigslist. If you choose to go in this direction, be on the lookout for scams. Selling your card online is a great option if someone gifts you a card from a retailer that you don’t like or never would typically go to. For example, someone may give you a gift card to a sporting goods store even though you haven’t played basketball in ten years.  In that instance, you might be best off liquidating the card, taking the money, and putting it towards something you actually want. 4. Buy money orders Another way to convert Visa gift cards to cash is to buy a money order. Simply visit the post office or banking kiosk, purchase a money order, and then deposit that into your checking account or use it to pay for a certain item. Of course, to do this you’ll need a bank account from a financial institution. Just be careful not to do too many of these transactions or the bank may get suspicious and shut down your account. 5. Buy and flip products  Some consumers like to get creative when using Visa gift cards, flipping products to generate cash. For example, you could buy low-cost items online with a gift card and sell them on sites like eBay and Amazon to make a few bucks.  This approach is time-consuming and somewhat risky as you may not make your money back in full. However, if you play your cards right, you could earn back more than your original amount. 6. Add money to your PayPal or Venmo account  Some people also convert Visa cards to PayPal wallets or Venmo wallets for flexible online usage.  Transferring money to a digital wallet can provide greater flexibility when making online transactions. Just watch out for transaction fees when moving money out of your PayPal account and into your bank account.  7. Sell your card to someone you know Suppose you’re out with a friend and really need cash. You could offer to sell the card to a friend straight up or for a slight discount. If you have already used the card, make sure to check the latest gift card balance so that you trade the card for an accurate amount. The last thing you want to do is offer a $50 card only to have $30 or less remaining. That’s an easy way to lose a friend. 8. Invest the money   Perhaps the smartest thing you can do is to link the card to a brokerage account and invest the money. For example, $100 could buy you a few stocks, bonds, or funds. If you invest the money wisely, you could grow the original sum into a much greater amount over time.  This is an excellent option for someone who doesn’t need the money right away and would rather put it toward long-term use.  One savvy method is to take an old gift card you’re never going to use, liquidate it, and then transfer the money directly into an investment account.  9. Re-gift the card There’s nothing worse than rushing around last-minute to get to a party or wedding and not having a gift to bring. Keep your Visa gift card in a back drawer and use it for the next gift-giving occasion — like a wedding, birthday, or holiday. You’ll be glad you saved it when the opportunity presents itself. You’ll avoid a trip to the ATM, making the gift card even better than having cash. How to Use a Visa Gift Card Here’s how to use a Visa gift card. Decide if you want the card  The first thing to do is decide if you want to keep the card or liquidate it for cash. Visa cards can come in handy in certain circumstances, but some prefer to ditch them for cash assets.  Activate the card 

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