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We’ve all read the headlines: Fuel and electricity costs are on the rise, and they’re only going to get more expensive as temperatures continue to drop. In some cases, the energy crisis has become so extreme that people are having to choose between buying groceries and heating their homes—a reality that’s hard to comprehend in our modern age.

Yet according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the cost of heating oil is expected to jump as much as 45% compared with last winter. And natural gas could cost up to 25% more while electricity could rise 11% or more.

So what does all this mean for prospective homebuyers? For one thing, you’ll want to be sure your new home is as energy-efficient as possible. To help, we spoke to experts to find out the features buyers should be looking for in homes in light of the ongoing energy crisis. Here’s what they had to say.

1. Limit your commute

Your daily commute likely isn’t the first thing that comes to mind when you think of home shopping, but maybe it should be on the top of your list.

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Welcome to Camp Cargo on 5 acres of forest land in the mountains near Sewanee, TN. It’s a one-of-a-kind offering that was difficult to price properly.

“As a real estate agent, you have to look for comps to price things and when you find zero comps in the area, you know you have something unique,” says Keith Killebrew with Parks Realty. “This one is unique because it’s built with nine full-size shipping containers from around the world. They’re built to house goods and be watertight, so when you start with that and build a home out of them, it’s pretty unique.”

After research and discussions with the seller, the structure completed in 2020 was listed for $895,000.

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Federal regulations provide "zero tolerance" for miscalculating real estate transaction taxes when providing TILA-RESPA integrated disclosure to borrowers, Black Knight warns.

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On “Home Town,” Erin and Ben Napier have worked on a lot of homes with a dated grandma-esque style that’s crying out to be fixed—but what if you’ve actually bought that house from your own grandma?

In the Season 7 episode “The Mullet House,” Erin and Ben meet newlyweds Alex and Wesley. Alex’s grandma was looking to downsize, so they bought her 4,000-square-foot, four-bedroom, three-bathroom home for just $144,000.

This house, built in 1955, has been in Alex’s family for 30 years, so she has a lot of special memories connected to the place. Still, the interior is decidedly old-fashioned, with floral wallpaper and ornate light fixtures.

Erin and Ben are given a budget of $250,000 to help the couple save the best parts of the house while replacing just enough to make it feel updated and youthful. Read on to find out which features the Napiers decide to save—and replace—which might give you ideas on what can stay (or go) in your own abode for 2023.

The brokerage announced that it had acquired the full-service real estate firm d'aprile properties, which closed nearly $1.2 billion in sales volume last year, according to a report.

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Carley Chase found her dream home in Chandler, Ariz., this summer: a three-bedroom ranch, close to work, with a pool and a backyard lined with palm trees.

Soaring interest rates threatened to put it out of reach. Her lender suggested a temporary buydown that would lower her mortgage payment for the first three years.

“I don’t think I would have been able to afford it without the buydown,” Ms. Chase said.

Rising borrowing costs have dramatically increased the cost of buying a home this year, reviving interest in mortgage products like temporary buydowns that fell out of favor after the 2008 financial crisis.

While December's data represented the 12th straight decrease in homebuilder sentiment, there is a "silver lining." The average price reduction was 8 percent, up from 5 or 6 percent earlier this year, report says.

As the final Christmas countdown commences, it's easy to get wrapped up in the pressure of finding the perfect gift, getting your home ready for visitors and closing up the final deals of the year while feeling like you're running on E. In the midst of our busyness, it's easy to miss the golden opportunity the holidays provide — the chance to reflect, give thanks and give back. Here's a list of real estate-related causes you can support this holiday season with your time, talent and treasures.

The judge denied requests filed by NAR, Anywhere, Keller Williams, RE/MAX and HomeServices of America, allowing the Sitzer/Burnett case to continue toward a new October trial date.

Other young adults, who have poor credit history and are frustrated with expensive rental application fees, can relate to the housing troubles of the first Gen Zer elected to Congress.

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She’s a whip-smart executive, but she might take a loss this time.

Meg Whitman, who helped turn eBay into a multibillion-dollar behemoth and later served as CEO at Hewlett Packard Enterprise, has listed her West Hollywood, CA, home for a million dollars less than what she paid for it, according to Dirt.

Whitman snapped up the two-bedroom, two-bath, 2,300-square-foot home in 2018 for $6,500,000. She listed it for her purchase price in 2020, before taking it off the market a few months later. It’s now available for $5,495,000.

The billionaire is currently serving as the U.S. ambassador to Kenya, so she’s spending less time in Southern California.

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When TikTok launched in 2017, it was known as a platform for viral dance videos. Since then, its roughly 1 billion users turn to the social media app for videos on an array of topics, from comedy to cooking to something called #RushTok—an oddly intriguing look at the sorority and fraternity recruitment process on various college campuses.

On TikTok, you can find a video about nearly anything. And during the COVID-19 pandemic, the app became a true force for marketing, buying, and selling homes at a time when in-person home tours were literally impossible. During the months that followed, despite the return of in-home viewings, real estate TikTok exploded. The telegenic real estate agents who regularly posted videos had found a new way to reach homebuyers and sellers.

“Every business sector tried to use the influence of TikTok for its own benefit, and so did the real estate industry,” says Dustin Fox, a real estate agent and the owner of Fox Homes in Fairfax, VA. “In the post-pandemic era, TikTok forced the housing industry to change its marketing strategy. I’d say that more than one-third of the buyers I work with are influenced by TikTok in their decisions they make around purchasing a home.”

Lauren Matera, a real estate agent who has more than 418,000 followers on TikTok, has witnessed the changes firsthand.

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Some people enjoy hitting the slopes on vacations or weekend trips. But for others, it’s a way of life.

Ski towns attract a certain kind of homeowner—those who thrive on the crisp mountain air, the easy-access snow sports, the chill lifestyle, and the tight-knit camaraderie that townies share. But this seductive way of life doesn’t come cheap. The unfortunate truth is that many of America’s popular ski towns have become overdeveloped, catering largely to the well-heeled. What was once quirky and unique is now shiny and corporate—with prices to match.

“A lot of people are getting priced out of ski towns now,” says Eugene Buchanan, a longtime resident of Steamboat Springs, CO, and author of “Tales From a Mountain Town: Musings From 25 Years of Living in the Colorado Rockies.” “Nobody can afford to live in Aspen anymore.”

Indeed, homes in the most popular ski towns have become accessible only to the massively wealthy. The average home price around Jackson Hole, WY, or Vail, CO, is north of $3 million. Even the average home in a classic East Coast ski town like Stratton, VT, is more than $1 million.

Soaring mortgage rates, slagging sales, thousands and thousands of layoffs: The past 12 months have offered a jarring reminder that what goes up must come down.

Alfred Gallman performed around the world, but he never had a home of his own, until he won a housing lottery and found his ‘own little corner’ in Queens.

A Craftsman-style cottage in Los Angeles, a three-bedroom apartment in San Francisco and a midcentury ranch in Novato.

Where MLSs ban commingling, brokerage websites either can’t display non-MLS listings or must hide this inventory behind filters and log-in walls. Redfin's Joe Rath offers an argument in favor of allowing brokerages to display all of the options.

It's closing day, and the hard work is over right? Marketing expert, Luke Babich, says not so fast and reminds agents to make sure that their clients are prepared to sign on the dotted line

There's no doubt about it — being an expert in your market takes work — but it’s worth it! Make the new year ahead your opportunity to grow your expertise and, in turn, your business.  

In the lead up to Inman Connect New York, Vija Williams offered tips on how teams can survive a shrinking market. 'Prepare for the worst and hope for the best,' she said.