Home values have surged at 2X the normal rate since the pandemic

🪅 Happy Fat Tuesday!

Today's newsletter is 602 words — a 2.5-minute read.

1. Keller Williams takes on major investment from Stone Point Capital, appoints new CEO

Keller Williams Realty announced yesterday that it has taken a significant investment from Stone Point Capital, the parent company of CoreLogic, to help fuel continued growth and innovation.

Alongside this announcement, Keller Williams said it had appointed Christopher Czarnecki as its new CEO and President to take over from Mark Willis, who stepped down from his leadership role in January.

2. Home sale cancellations hit a record high in January

Home sale cancellations surged to their highest level with 14.3% of pending deals falling through in January, according to an analysis by Redfin.

• The figure, representing over 41,000 failed home-purchase agreements, marks an increase from 13.4% a year earlier and is the highest rate recorded for January since 2017.

In Texas, the trend was most pronounced in Houston where increasing housing supply is leading to a buyer’s market.

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3. Catch up quick

⚖️ REX loses appeal in a long-running lawsuit against NAR, Zillow. (HousingWire)

⚠️ HUD, FHA staffing cuts would undermine housing, union warns. (Urban)

🚀 RE/MAX announces ‘digital-first’ RE/BRAND of the iconic logo. (RE/MAX)

💳 Here’s how rent can make or break your credit. (CNBC)

📢 Trump tariffs on Canada and Mexico take effect. (APNews)

👨‍⚖️ NAR appoints Jonathan Waclawski as its general counsel. (Bloomberg)

🎓 Fun read: Dallas is one of the hottest destinations for college-educated Americans. (Axios)

4. Home values have surged at 2X the normal rate since the pandemic

According to a report from Zillow, home values have risen by 45.3 percent since 2020, packing more than 10 years of typical home value growth into just five years.

Austin, Texas, experienced the biggest ups and downs during this period, with home values surging more than any other metro—rising 40.3 percent in the year ending August 2021. The market then swung in the opposite direction, seeing the largest annual decline in home values falling 14% in the year ending July 2023.

5. Austin City Council approves new regulation for short-term rentals (STRs) but delays some changes

The city of Austin will soon begin requiring platforms such as Airbnb and Vrbo to collect and remit Hotel Occupancy Tax revenues on behalf of short-term rental properties, marking the first in a number of expected changes in the industry.

The change, which goes into effect April 1, is aimed at closing loopholes that have allowed thousands of unlicensed rentals to operate without paying taxes.

For other expected changes, the City Council voted to push them through but delay their implementation until Oct. 1. This will allow staff to ensure the new rules comply with any state law changes pursued by the legislature.

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