Author: josh

Realtor.com has released Spotlight Listings, a new marketing tool that enables agents to drive additional traffic to their listings. Spotlight’s launch coincides with a major update to Local Expert, a lead generation tool that gives agents prominent placement on home and directory search results.

Chess’s international governing body said Tuesday that it filed a complaint against former World Chess Champion Vladimir Kramnik after he leveled unproven allegations of cheating against fellow players, including Daniel Naroditsky, who died last month at age 29. The complaint centers on harassment and “the insulting of an individual’s dignity,” said the International Chess Federation, known by the acronym FIDE, in a news release. Naroditsky’s cause of death has not been made public. Kramnik accused Naroditsky, an American grandmaster of cheating last year and continued to share suspicions on social media. Naroditsky, a prodigious chess player who helped usher in the game’s online boom with…

Beside, an AI voice startup that emerged from stealth earlier this month has raised $32 million to expand its ‘AI receptionist,’ which is already handling millions of calls per month. The startup’s AI receptionist aims to fill the gap for people and small businesses who can’t afford a full-time assistant. It answers calls, remembers customer details, books appointments, and handles follow-ups, all through an app that connects directly to a customer’s existing phone number. “We think of it like hiring a Harvard-grad Chief of Staff with a perfect memory,” Maxime Germain, Beside’s Paris-based founder and CEO, told Fortune. “Over time,…

Dave:The US is on the brink of a recession, or at least that’s what one major bank is saying. According to another one, though the risk is mild and it’s actually going down. So which one is it? Is the economy really faltering and at risk of serious declines or is growth going to continue and does any of this even actually matter to real estate investors? Today we’re going to dive into this and discuss why the traditional ways of measuring recessions is failing to provide ordinary Americans and the real estate investing community with the information it needs,…

Asking the right questions that start with “why” can reveal your buyers’ true motivations and keep contracts from falling apart, writes broker Annette DeCicco. Rocks, like buyers, are easy pickings. They’re everywhere. However, what’s below the surface is often questionable, something to avoid. Without a communication strategy, heavy on “why” questions, agents face a serious risk of loss: derailed contracts.  Pre-qualifying your buyer clients before you show homes and create offers can not only save major communication issues, but it can also help keep already complex transactions from falling apart. The secret is getting behind the walls that buyers sometimes…

In This Article This article is presented by Walker & Dunlop. Before buying any property, the investors should ask themselves: Is this a good market? Understanding the local fundamentals is critical if you want to avoid overpaying or investing in a declining area.  In order to be successful, you need to know the economic health, tenant profile, rent trajectory, and market potential of an area before you ever run the numbers on a deal—whether you are buying a 5-unit property in Texas or a 100-unit apartment complex in Georgia. Tools like WDSuite from Walker & Dunlop make that process easier.…

For decades, the path to the CEO suite often ran through a foreign airport. A rotation in London, a turnaround in São Paulo, a regional post in Singapore. These were the proving grounds where future leaders built global fluency and earned credibility with the board. But in an age of regional supply chains, rising protectionism, and AI-powered everything, the question has resurfaced: Does international experience still matter? Christine Greybe, president of leadership consulting at DHR Global, thinks it does, though with nuance. “Not all companies are global,” she says. “We have clients who are purely national and others that operate around the world. If…

In This Article Don’t think you have enough time, money, or energy to invest in real estate? Living in an expensive and highly competitive market, today’s guest had every reason not to invest, yet has been able to build her own rental portfolio in just a few years—all while working a normal W-2 job. If she can do it, YOU can, too! Welcome back to the Real Estate Rookie podcast! Esther Simeone was stuck in a pricey market, and after submitting over a dozen offers and missing out on every one, she could have put real estate investing on the…

High interest rates, growing inventory and economic uncertainty have cooled the housing market, forcing sellers to make price cuts and concessions. Agents say realistic pricing, smart repairs and strong presentation are key to helping homeowners navigate the new normal — where bidding wars are rare and days on market are rising.

Key takeaways:  Escrow ensures fairness and security by holding funds or documents with a neutral third party until all transaction terms are met. There are two main types of escrow: Transaction escrow (during the purchase) and mortgage escrow (after closing). Escrow accounts simplify ownership costs by combining property taxes and insurance into one predictable monthly payment. They also reduce risk for both homeowners and lenders by ensuring critical payments are made on time. As a first-time homebuyer, you may have encountered the term “escrow”, but what does it actually mean? Escrow refers to holding something, like funds or documents, by…