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If you have a fixed-rate mortgage, your payment is the same amount every month and never changes no matter how much the interest rates fluctuate. While there’s some comfort to that, wouldn’t it be amazing to have a lower house payment when you’re trying to tighten the purse strings?

That’s where an adjustable-rate mortgage, or ARM, comes in.

It’s a home loan with a lower interest rate than a fixed-rate mortgage. So, what’s the catch? The ARM starter interest rate doesn’t last forever, and your payments could go up or down depending on the going rate.

Here’s what you need to know about ARMs and if you should convert to one to get a lower house payment.

Realtor.com

A waterfront Dutch gambrel in York, ME, is the oldest property to hit the market this week on Realtor.com®.

Overlooking the North Basin of the York River, this beauty offers pristine views of the Maine coastline. The sizable home has been updated over the years, but lots of period details remain.

Other dwellings to hit the market this week include a home operating as a bed-and-breakfast in Maine, a brick farmhouse on 71 acres in Pennsylvania, and a riverfront home in Rhode Island.

Scroll down for a full look at this week’s 10 oldest homes.

Slowing mortgage rate growth impacted homebuyers and sellers in different ways in December, according to Zillow's latest market report. The dip was enough for buyers to navigate the winter market, but wasn't enough for would-be sellers to list.

HGTV

The eighth season of “Brother vs. Brother,” which pits property brothers Jonathan and Drew Scott against each other renovating separate homes room by room, is getting crazier by the minute.

That could be because, for this season, they’ve thrown out all rules. They can spend as much as they want and do whatever they want, wherever they want.

The episode “Who’s King of the Kitchens” has them squaring off on kitchen and dining spaces. Jonathan thinks he has it in the bag, because he’s won every single kitchen competition so far.

“I haven’t lost a challenge yet,” he boasts.

If you’re ready to build your brand on a site exclusively devoted to real estate professionals and enthusiasts, Foiye is the place to be in 2023.  

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The numbers: Construction on new U.S. homes fell a seasonally adjusted 1.4% in December to 1.38 million, the Commerce Department said Thursday.

The drop in construction on homes followed the decline in November, when housing starts also fell by 1.8%.

Economics polled by the Wall Street Journal expected housing starts to drop to a 1.36 million rate from November’s initial estimate of 1.43 million.

Housing starts are at the lowest level since July 2022.

Crystal White, director of agent development at @properties, told Inman ahead of ICNY Jan. 24-26 that real estate pros need to know their business as well as A-list actors know their lines.

Executives at the iBuying pioneer see tremendous opportunity if they can negotiate today's challenging "in-between" phase where buyers and sellers are on the fence.

Overall housing starts clocked in at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,382,000, 1.4 percent below levels recorded in November, according to new data released Thursday by the U.S. Census Bureau.

Founded in 2018, the team's career sales volume exceeds $300 million, and in 2022, the team was ranked one of the top in New York State by RealTrends.

Under a new proposal, a homeowner with a mortgage insured by the Federal Housing Administration would have uniform steps to follow to object to what they believe is an unfair, biased appraisal.

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Talk about a quick turnaround!

After purchasing an eight-bedroom, 10.5-bath, 12,300-square-foot home in Encino, CA, in May 2022, Michael B. Jordan has put it back on the market for $12,998,000.

The home was built in 2021 and was upgraded to the tune of about a half-million dollars after the “Creed” star snapped it up. Here’s what he’ll be leaving behind.

Realtor.com

The reporting tool determines a number of return-on-investment scenarios, taking into account market conditions, available financing and any need for renovations and improvements.

This week’s properties are a three-bedroom in Ocean Township, N.J., and a six-bedroom in Pelham Manor, N.Y.

This week’s properties are on the Upper East Side, in Chelsea and Bushwick.

Harper Elm General Contractor viz Houzz

What your house looks like outside is just as important as what it looks like inside—especially if you plan on selling it one day.

Boosting your curb appeal will not only elevate your enjoyment of—and confidence in—your home, it will also mark an important investment in its long-term value. Curb appeal alone can add 7% or more to the value of your home. Also, the National Association of Realtors® found that 100% of landscaping and tree service costs are recovered when a home sells.

But which landscaping tasks will bring you the best return on investment, or ROI?

Read on for insights from real estate and design pros on the outdoor renovation projects that deliver the best and worst returns.

Joey Leisz

Joey and Sydney Leisz were losing hope of ever becoming homeowners.

“Being in our late 20s, even though we both have great careers working in real estate and my wife as a college professor, we were having a difficult time getting our foot in the door with a home purchase,” Joey says.

They were living in south Orange County, CA, one of the nation’s most expensive markets where “entry-level homes … can be between $800,000 to $1 million,” according to Joey.

They were resigned to being lifelong renters—but shortly after they tied the knot two years ago, Joey received an intriguing offer: A client of his was looking to unload a mobile home for $65,000.

This week the spotlight shines on Hilary Farnum-Fasth of Corcoran Reverie, a broker serving markets in both North Florida and Tennessee.

A new report gives us an idea, based on local income and housing prices.

In this week’s video column, @properties Christie’s International Real Estate executives Amy Corr and Kevin Van Eck encourage brokers to look to investment and second home properties as a way for their agents to maintain income and grow their businesses – especially in a changing market.