Blog Archives

Will Wall Street cause Consumer Advocates to revisit Real Estate Cartel?

Posted on June 10, 2017 by Bill Wendel — No Comments ↓

An article by Inman News, a leading real estate technology news site, has traditional real estate agents buzzing about a potential threat. More revealing than the headline, Welcome to Wall Street’s housing market, is the subhead: Investors will eat agent commissions and…

Posted in #REonTap, #SpeculatorsWithoutBorders, Bubble Hour, Commission Reform, Consumer protection, Disrupt Real Estate, Housing bubble, RE2020, RECALL: Real Estate Consumer Alliance, Unbundling the Commission

Puffing the housing market: Time to pause or go proactive?

Posted on June 2, 2017 by Bill Wendel — No Comments ↓

The headline above is distressing enough without using bloated list or asking prices — a stat that is meaningless so rarely quoted — to throw gas on overheated markets nationwide. Without more precise local information or insight into the economy,…

Posted in Bidding wars, Bubble Hour, Buyer agent, Defensive Homebuying, Housing bubble, Intention Inventory, Proactive househunting, Real Estate Bubble, Savings & Rebates, Timing the market

Defensive homebuying in 2017: Can you future proof homebuying decisions?

Posted on December 31, 2016 by Bill Wendel — No Comments ↓

As 2016 comes to a close, there is an uptick of activity on BostonBubble, a forum for homebuyers in Greater Boston that dates back to 2005. A self-described “lowly renter” is asking advice about homebuying in the New Year because…

Posted in #REonTap, Bubble Hour, Buyer agent, Defensive Homebuying, Great Senior Sell-Off, Housing bubble, Housing forecasts, Real Estate Bubble, Seasonality, Timing the market

Crowdsourcing insights into a slumping housing market in Boston

Posted on November 30, 2016 by Bill Wendel — No Comments ↓

December 11 will mark the 9th anniversary of joining http://BostonBubble.com, a forum for homebuyers to crowdsource insights during the real estate recession. Over that period, Real Estate Cafe contributed over 100 posts, and two offer context for the current housing market. Obviously, they were…

Posted in "We" companies, #REonTap, Bubble Hour, Bubble map, Housing bubble, Market trends, Price reductions, Savings & Rebates, Seasonality, Sweetest Deals

Confront Candidates by Crowdsourcing Housing Questions for Next Debate

Posted on September 27, 2016 by Bill Wendel — No Comments ↓

Without a question about housing or any mention of investigations and lawsuits related to Trump University, references to real estate were revealing in last night’s debate between presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. When a reporter asked afterwards if…

Posted in #SpeculatorsWithoutBorders, Affordable housing, Consumer protection, Foreclosure Prevention, Housing bubble, Housing policy, Real Estate Bubble, RECALL: Real Estate Consumer Alliance

Tidal Wave of #SpeculatorsWithoutBorders or Virtual Town Hall Meeting?

Posted on September 16, 2016 by Bill Wendel — No Comments ↓

.@BostonGlobe Millennium sales office opened in China before Boston, @CambMA for sale too #SpeculatorsWithoutBorders pic.twitter.com/FGsWetP1mw — Bill Wendel (@RealEstateCafe) September 1, 2016 If “Foreign buyers at Millennium Tower show that Boston is on a world stage,” is that was a good…

Posted in #REonTap, #SpeculatorsWithoutBorders, Affordable housing, Bidding wars, Bubble Hour, Consumer protection, Defensive Homebuying, Housing bubble, Housing Justice, Real Estate Bubble

Who will put savings back into buyer agency?

Posted on August 13, 2016 by Bill Wendel — No Comments ↓

My assumption is that many buyer agents who take fiduciary duties seriously have worked with buyers willing to pay over asking price because they believe rising prices will offset their leap of faith. In 1988, Nobel prize winning economist Robert…

Posted in Bidding wars, Bubble Hour, Buyer agent, Defensive Homebuying, Dual Agency Detective, Great Senior Sell-Off, Housing bubble, Housing forecasts, Real Estate Bubble, Savings & Rebates, Seasonality, Timing the market

The beginning of the end of “CONCEAL estate”?

Posted on February 24, 2016 by Bill Wendel — No Comments ↓

Earlier today, the publisher of a leading real estate news site posted this comment on Facebook: “Foreign buyers are not as active as before due to the value of the dollar, says Realogy CEO Richard Smith, but not meaningful to the…

Posted in Affordable housing, Bidding wars, Blockchain, Consumer protection, Housing bubble, Housing Justice, Luxury housing, Real Estate Consumer Bill of Rights, RECALL: Real Estate Consumer Alliance

Out Bid or Out Dated: Industry & media hype missing Bidding Wars trends?

Posted on September 19, 2015 by Bill Wendel — No Comments ↓

.@BethTeitell @BostonGlobe 1Q2015 data misses seasonality, see @CurbedBoston Fall predictions http://t.co/Gl8C0Y7MSj pic.twitter.com/eaanXqiaRs — Bill Wendel (@RealEstateCafe) September 19, 2015 This started as a comment on BostonBubble, a decade old forum that’s enabled homebuyers in Boston to share headlines and…

Posted in Bidding wars, Bubble Hour, Consumer protection, Crowdsourcing, Defensive Homebuying, Housing bubble, Investigative Reporting, Market trends, Seasonality, Timing the market

Will Pope’s encyclical expand Housing Justice Movement?

Posted on June 24, 2015 by Bill Wendel — No Comments ↓

Homeownership rates are falling in Massachusetts and across the nation, and housing is back in newspaper headlines and nationally syndicated talk shows. Here’s one perspective, that knowingly or unknowingly, points to the Pope’s encyclical on the environment and the prospect of a grassroots movement for…

Posted in Affordable housing, Bubble Hour, Great Senior Sell-Off, Housing bubble, Housing Justice, iCovery, Luxury housing, Pope's Encyclical, Price trends, Real Estate Bubble