Whether it’s dealing with an angry customer who’s fighting your company or an internet troll you’ve never met, it’s imperative that broker-owners, managers, or team leadership address any claims online immediately.Jeff Mowatt, who has trained customer service teams for more than 25 years and authored Becoming a Service Icon in 90 Minutes a Month, offers these four tips when dealing with negative comments, complaints, and even harassment
Half of the world’s population lives near active earthquake faults, and some may not even know it.“Small earthquakes are happening every day near you, and large earthquakes are happening somewhere around the globe that may not be in your mind,” Volkan Sevilgen, co-founder of Temblor, an app that estimates the likelihood of seismic shaking and home damage, told Curbed.com.States like California and Utah have thousands of fault lines running
A burglary occurs about every 20 seconds, and some homeowners may be making it too easy for intruders. A burglar may knock on the door first to check if a resident is home. Some will then test the doorknob—if it’s unlocked, they’ve got easy access.In a survey of 1,000 consumers across the country, home security review website SafeHome found that many residents lock their doors, but many also forget to do so. For example, residents in the
Homeowners should be feeling richer. The share of equity-rich properties rose to a new high—26 percent of homeowners with a mortgage in the third quarter, according to ATTOM Data Solutions’ Q3 2017 U.S. Home Equity & Underwater Report.In the third quarter, there were more than 14 million U.S. properties considered equity rich, which is when the combined loan amount secured by the property is 50 percent or less of the estimated market val
Existing-home sales in October rose to the strongest pace since earlier this summer, the National Association of REALTORS® reported Tuesday.Total existing-home sales—which comprise completed transactions of single-family homes, townhomes, condos, and co-ops—rose 2 percent month over month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.48 million. Sales are now at the strongest pace since June’s 5.51 million.However, sales remain 0.9 percent bel
The Federal Communications Commission released a plan Tuesday to reverse net neutrality rules, a move that the National Association of REALTORS® is concerned will make it harder for real estate companies, multiple listing services, and property data aggregators to provide their services in a cost-effective way.“We are looking carefully at the FCC’s plan to reverse net neutrality, which has been an effective and proven way to ensure a level p
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Housing starts neared their postrecession high in October, with expectations that the new-home market will soon provide much-needed inventory relief, the Commerce Department reports.Starts, which reflect combined totals within the single-family and multifamily sectors, jumped 13.7 percent in October to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.29 million. That’s the highest reading for new-home production since October 2016, when starts had reache
Freddie Mac has announced that it has rejoined the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit, a federal program that urges the investment of equity in affordable rental housing. The program supports the creation and preservation of affordable rental housing for low-income households. Freddie says it plans to close its first LIHTC investment in January 2018.“We are excited to resume investing in Low-Income Housing Tax Credits, which will expand our affordab
Homeowners and appraisers are gradually seeing more eye to eye when it comes to home values. The latest Quicken Loans Home Price Perception Index shows that appraised home values in October were an average of 0.99 percent lower than homeowners’ expectations.That’s much better than it has been in the last two years, as rapid run-ups in home prices across the country have caused homeowner and appraiser perceptions to become misaligned. Over the
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