November 14, 2018

It’s the End of the (Paper) World As We Know It…and We Feel Fine!

As paper disappears more and more from our daily lives, the real estate industry sometimes seems like one of the last vestiges of ink-and-paper transactions. These days you can buy a car, enroll in college, start a new job, file your taxes, sign up for home and car insurance, and send money anywhere in the […]

“If Only I Had Known …”

This is the refrain repeated by so many home buyers who lost or almost lost their savings from a wire fraud attempt during the process of buying a home: “If only I had known.” Those of us in the real estate industry are very aware of the potential risks of wiring money in an age […]

The Sky Is Not Falling. Mark Sprague’s Texas Market Update

The unemployment rate has hit a new low — 3.7 percent — that was last seen in December of 1969. Of course, things were a little different in the late 1960s. Back then you could support a family on one income and still own a house and a car. These days? Not so much. In […]

Is the Texas Market Still Booming? Mark Sprague’s Texas Market Update

The Texas metros housing markets have certainly been booming over the last several years. But as I’ve said before, the concern is when is the slowdown? Is it imminent, in a couple of years, when? Home sales across the U.S. have seen a slight drop for the fourth straight month in July of this year. This is […]

Mark’s Monthly Texas Market Update

By Mark Sprague, State Director of Information Capital at Independence Title Is the local housing market slowing? Locally, regionally, and nationally, that seems to be a common question / theme. Locally, I can tell you that most of the Texas metros have been on a sustained, positive run, with Austin’s being the longest at over […]

Our New App is Here!!

Have you heard that we have a new app? IndependenceTitleAgent One is now available! Check out the video below on some of the new features! If you have questions, contact your Independence Title Business Development Representative.

The Billion-Dollar Industry Threatening Real Estate Transactions – How to Protect Yourself

by Cassandra Majors Pop Quiz: What industry grew by almost a billion dollars from 2016 to 2017? Hints: You wouldn’t want to invest in it, there are no publicly traded companies participating in it, but it’s still one of the fasting growing industries in the world. Give up? The answer may surprise you: it’s wire […]

Lumber Prices are Rising! Mark Sprague’s Texas Market Update

By Mark Sprague, Independence Title State Director of Information Capital The House / Apartment You Look at Today Will Be Gone Tomorrow! And it will certainly be more expensive. Not only is there not enough resale inventory, rates are increasing and the cost of building is up dramatically. Lumber prices have risen by roughly 22% […]

The Spring Education Menu is Here!-DFW

Spring is here and it’s time for the new Independence Title Education Menu! We have some exciting new classes and updates for you. UPDATED! Facebook for Real Estate | 1 HR CE | Course#31968 What is your main goal when using Facebook? Engaging with clients? Marketing listings? Our goal is to help you overcome the challenges […]

The Spring Education Menu is Here!-San Antonio

The Spring Education Menu is Here!-Austin

Carbon Monoxide Detectors: Now a City of Austin Requirement

By Cassandra Majors After I smoked my last cigarette five years ago, I quickly mutated into a twitchy, manic, raging lunatic for the next two weeks. I came up with 100 creative ways to murder most of the people who crossed my path during that time, mostly for minor infractions like taking too long at […]

How Many Changes Have You Seen? What You Need to Know About the TREC Contract Changes

If you’ve been a Realtor® for several years, you’ve probably seen a few iterations of the Texas Real Estate Commission (TREC) contract forms. TREC strives to listen to input from license holders and to continually improve the forms that are used for Texas real estate transactions. Improvement usually means change, and change means there are […]

Does Your Social Media Need A TREC Check Up?

Is it us or do the TREC requirements for posting the IABS and Consumer Protection Notice on social media seem a little confusing? “So what exactly DOES TREC want from me? Am I compliant?” These are questions we are asked often. We all know TREC is asking that the Information About Brokerage Service and Consumer […]

The MUD Mystery

There’s one sentence in one section of the contract that always ruffles everyone’s feathers whenever we teach our class Navigating the 1-to-4 Family Contract. The last sentence of section 6 E(3) Statutory Tax District states that the seller must deliver the buyer a statutory tax district notice, i.e. a MUD or WCID notice. This is […]

It’s a Weird, Weird World of Real Estate Out There

By Cassandra Majors Texas real estate can be pretty weird. In the rest of the country, for example, the idea of paying a seller a small fee in exchange for giving the potential buyers a window of time in which they can just change their fickle minds and walk away scot-free (the “option period”) sounds […]

TREC 3-Day Rule Update

At the TREC Commission meeting on November 13th, the Texas Association of Realtors, along with concerned real estate professionals around the state, sent in letters to express concerns about the proposed three-day requirement for delivery of earnest money (Paragraph 5). In the revised standard TREC contracts, the proposed language currently reads, “Within 3 days after […]

Has the Texas Real Estate Market Slowed?

by Mark Sprague I am frequently asked if the Texas real estate market has slowed. In this piece I’ll explain the state of the market and try to answer this question. First, some context. Austin real estate has been traveling at light speed with over 60% appreciation on residential real estate in the last ten […]

Rising Interest Rates Bring Challenges and Opportunities

The Federal Reserve announced on November 1st that interest rates will remain unchanged, for now. However, analysts are all but certain that the Federal Reserve will raise rates in December, and four more times in 2018. Economic growth remained at a robust 3% in the third quarter, even with the losses from Hurricanes Harvey and […]

You’re Killing Me, Sales!

By Cassandra Majors Whether or not you were the right age to see the cult classic coming-of-age movie The Sandlot, you’ve probably had this iconic line thrown at you whenever an 80s or 90s kid is annoyed with you: “You’re killing me, Smalls!” The most important plot-driver in the film is a lack of baseballs. […]

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