“In a plot twist, baby boomers have overtaken millennials — the largest U.S. population — to become the top generation of homebuyers,” said Jessica Lautz, NAR’s deputy chief economist and vice president of research.

The acquisition of the mortgage servicer comes on the heels of Rocket’s $1.75 billion deal for Redfin. 

The National Association of REALTORS’® Pending Home Sales Index rose 2% month over month in February, topping an expected 0.9% gain. 

The new policy allows sellers to put off marketing their properties for a period of time to be determined by their local MLSs. 

Nationally, home sales were down 2.6% year over year and up 8.4% month over month, RE/MAX said. 

The median existing-home price was also on the upswing last month, providing homeowners a bit of refuge as the stock market undergoes a correction, Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said in the monthly report. 

The pace of new-home construction was higher than economists expected, even as homebuilders expressed concern about the impact of tariffs and supply-side challenges. 

At the same time, Asian and Hispanic homeownership increased as well.

The week’s biggest real estate winner was Redfin, which saw its stock nearly double.

The acquisition was described as an all-stock transaction.

Falling consumer sentiment suggests potential homebuyers are wary of the short-term economic outlook and future inflation, CoreLogic Chief Economist Selma Hepp said. 

Furthermore, 13% of homeowners said they’d take their home off the market if they learned their ex was considering buying it.

Czarnecki fills the shoes of past president and CEO Mark Willis, who stepped down in January.

At the same time, the median sales price for a new home hit its highest level since 2022, according to the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.   

Rate announced an initiative that will offer first responders a one-year accidental death insurance policy that covers their mortgage balance up to $650,000 if they die in the line of duty.

In Phoenix, home prices posted a 2.09% year-over-year gain in December, while they slid 0.06% month over month.