by Brandon Newman | May 12, 2025 | Industry, News Feed
Real estate is one of the most powerful long-term investments one can make — especially in the luxury space. Despite economic headwinds impacting various sectors, the high-end property market continues to demonstrate remarkable resilience and adaptability.
According to the Coldwell Banker Global Luxury 2025 Trend Report, the luxury segment remains a bright spot in U.S. real estate and reports like this create a unique opportunity for agents who possess the right resources to give them a competitive edge.
Turning luxury trends into agent opportunities
The Trend Report turns insights into actionable listing strategies, helping Coldwell Banker Global Luxury Property Specialists position their listings to match evolving buyer demand. Among the leading trends defining today’s luxury landscape are:
- Multigenerational living: Luxury buyers are increasingly seeking homes that accommodate multigenerational living and evolving family needs. 45 percent of surveyed Luxury Property Specialists identified flexible layouts as a top design feature for their clients; knowledge that gives our agents a significant edge in property selection and marketing.
- Dynamic demographic shifts: “She-elites” and Gen X: Affluent women, or “She-elites”, are shaping buying decisions, with over 94 percent of Luxury Property Specialists reporting women either share decision-making power or hold primary authority. Meanwhile, Gen-X luxury homeownership grew by 10 percent over the past five years, outpacing all other age groups. Our specialists leverage these insights to tailor their approach to these influential buying/selling demographics.
- Emerging luxury flock spots: New hubs for primary and secondary residences are attracting high-net-worth individuals seeking lower taxes, economic opportunity, safety, lifestyle benefits and favorable climates compared to traditional luxury markets. Our globally connected network enables agents to facilitate seamless transitions for clients exploring these emerging opportunities.
Identifying these luxury market trends is only the first step — equally important is how Coldwell Banker provides its specialists with the tools to leverage these insights strategically.
Empowering luxury agents to lead and succeed
Coldwell Banker Global Luxury equips its elite Luxury Property Specialists to lead confidently, armed with exclusive tools that elevate the client experience and deliver results. In addition to a powerful network and resources like the Trend Report, agents have access to events like Generation Blue — returning this September — that offer opportunities for education, networking and staying ahead of industry trends.
Coldwell Banker Global Luxury Property Specialists, representing the top 10 percent of independent sales professionals affiliated with the brand worldwide, are a highly exclusive group equipped to handle these transactions. These specialists have demonstrated impressive year-over-year growth across all price points, including a 235 percent increase in the $50 million+ category. Coldwell Banker affiliated agents handled $220 million in daily luxury sales in 2024.
Crafting agent excellence in a competitive market
As 2025 unfolds, shifting consumer preferences are shaping the market in real time. Luxury transactions require a unique approach, with more complex negotiations and higher stakes.
The strength of the Coldwell Banker Global Luxury program lies in its unwavering focus on empowering agents. By combining cutting-edge tools, data-driven insights, an international network and a commitment to personal brand development, the program ensures its specialists are not just participants in the luxury market — they are leaders, trusted advisors and the driving force behind their clients’ success.
To learn more about how to grow your business and join this elite network, visit the Coldwell Banker Global Luxury website.
This post was originally published on this site
by Brandon Newman | Oct 2, 2024 | Investing, News Feed
As a landlord, you probably already know that taxes are unavoidable, but that doesn’t mean you can’t minimize them and keep more of your hard-earned cash. The IRS can be your friend who gives you their notes before the test or the bully who takes your lunch money. It’s all about how you utilize the tax code in your favor. Here’s a little guide on how to play the tax game without paying a cent more than necessary.
Tax Advantages Of Rental Properties
First off, depreciation is your best friend. The IRS lets you deduct the wear and tear of your property over 27.5 years. So, while your house may actually be appreciating in value, on paper, it’s “wearing down,” which magically reduces your taxable income. Next, we have deductible operating expenses like insurance, taxes, and more that can significantly lower your tax bill. Finally, there is capital gains tax relief that comes into play when you hold your property longer than one year, which you may qualify for.
Another tip: if you’re planning to sell your rental property, the 1031 exchange is your golden ticket. This lets you reinvest the sale proceeds into another rental property and defer paying capital gains tax. It’s like pressing pause on taxes while you grow your real estate empire.
How is Rental Income Taxed With a Mortgage
Next, if you’ve got a mortgage, you’re in luck. The interest you pay is fully deductible. Think of it like this: every time you make that monthly payment, a chunk of it goes towards lowering your tax bill. And if you use part of your property as your primary residence and rent out the rest, you can even deduct the interest on the rental portion. Sadly, the principal paydown is not tax deductible.
6 Tips To Reduce Your Rental Income Tax
Actively Managing
One of the lesser-known tricks is actively managing your property. According to the IRS, if you spend at least 750 hours a year managing your rentals, they consider it “active” income rather than passive. This classification opens up more deductions, which means more money stays in your pocket. The more involved you are in your property’s upkeep, the bigger the tax benefits. There are several factors to be considered active, so talk with an investor-friendly CPA to learn the ins and outs of qualifying.
Track and Deduct All Expenses
Keep a detailed list of every single expense related to your rental. We’re talking about everything from new appliances to marketing costs and travel expenses. Even the miles you drive to and from the property are deductible. Miss a deduction, and you might as well be tossing money out the window. Even the HOA fees you may pay are deductible. Finally, we can benefit from them telling us our trash cans were out an hour too early.
Depreciate Capital Investments
If you made any big-ticket upgrades like installing a new HVAC system or putting on a fresh roof, you can depreciate those over time. Depreciation accounts for the natural decline in the value of assets over time. Maintaining your property, and will the IRS reward you for it? That’s a rare win-win for both of us.
Make Borrowing Your Friend
When you take out a loan or line of credit for your rental, the interest is deductible, too. It’s another win-win: you get the cash to improve your property, and you get to reduce your tax bill. Just be careful not to overdo it—too much debt might limit your financing options down the road.
Reduce Capital Gains Tax
Now, if you plan to sell the property, brace yourself for capital gains tax, but don’t worry—there are ways to soften the blow. If the property was your primary residence for at least two of the last five years before selling, you can exclude up to $250,000 ($500,000 for married couples) from capital gains. For those thinking long-term, careful estate planning can help defer and even eliminate capital gains taxes when passing properties on to your heirs. Selling your property or gifting it to a family member will trigger a gain tax. Tax rules swing in our favor, though, when it is an estate gift instead.
Review your property tax assessments regularly
Over-assessed properties mean overpaying taxes. Compare your property’s assessed value to similar ones in your area, and if it looks off, appeal the assessment. You’d be surprised how often tax assessments are higher than they should be. The process to appeal property taxes varies by jurisdiction, so make sure to familiarize yourself with the deadlines and procedures needed. There are even companies that will do all of the work for you in return for a percentage of the money they saved you if you are confused by the process or don’t have time.
Managing rental properties is a juggling act, and taxes are just one of the balls in the air. But with these tips, you can minimize your tax bill and keep your investment profitable. If all these deductions and tax strategies sound overwhelming, don’t sweat it. Software like Baselane can help you stay organized. It simplifies bookkeeping and rent collection and even helps you categorize all those deductible expenses, so you’re not scrambling at tax time. Take it from me, the guy who regularly used to not keep up properly and would turn on panic mode each tax season.
These are just a few of the strategies to remember, and you should always consult with a tax professional who works with investors. Every deduction is a step toward paying less and keeping more of your rental income, which is exactly how you want to play the game.
Get a Better Tax Strategy Now
Connect with real estate investor-friendly tax pros who create thriving, tax-efficient portfolios.
Note By BiggerPockets: These are opinions written by the author and do not necessarily represent the opinions of BiggerPockets.
by Brandon Newman | Sep 5, 2024 | Industry, News Feed
CoStar filed a motion on Wednesday asking the court to deny Move’s amended preliminary injunction due to forensic data that allegedly proves a former Realtor.com editor never shared Move-owned files with the company.
Whether it’s refining your business model, mastering new technologies, or discovering strategies to capitalize on the next market surge, Inman Connect New York will prepare you to take bold steps forward. The Next Chapter is about to begin. Be part of it. Join us and thousands of real estate leaders Jan. 22-24, 2025.
A week after Move, Inc released their forensic analysis of former Realtor.com editor James Kaminsky’s work computer in an amended preliminary injunction request, CoStar Group has fired back with a 22-page motion requesting California District Judge George H. Wu to deny their rival’s request.
The motion rebuffs Move’s forensic analysis of James Kaminsky’s work computer, which revealed Kaminsky accessed and transferred 40 Move-owned documents allegedly containing online traffic, advertising and lead generation tactics during his final days working for the company. The motion also denies claims Kaminsky shared those files with CoStar to boost Homes.com’s search engine optimization strategy and website traffic.
CoStar’s counsel said the News & Insights files Kaminsky “minimally accessed” after leaving Move cannot be classified as trade secrets due to the fact that the publication schedules and information about popular content is now “largely stale” and “publicly available or readily ascertainable.” Move employee titles and salaries can also easily be found on Glassdoor and LinkedIn, the filing said.
“Not only are the documents underlying Move’s motion not trade secrets, they were not protected by Move as such,” the filing read. “The plaintiff did not protect information despite existence of “two password and user ID-protected systems, limiting employees’ access to [the] data, encrypting the data, requiring two-factor authentication to access the data, and separately storing the data on its own server that is password protected and limited”). Nor can Move justify it failure to secure its Google platform.”
A forensic expert also verified Kaminsky never shared any of the disputed files with CoStar, they said, eliminating the need for a preliminary injunction.
“Move cannot identify any change CoStar has made to its business or damage it has suffered as a result of Kaminsky’s access to the five Move documents; and CoStar’s Homes.com outperformed Realtor.com for months prior to Kaminsky joining CoStar,” the filing read. “There is no mystery why Move is seeking to enjoin CoStar from using documents it has not used: Move’s Realtor.com is losing market share to CoStar’s Homes.com … That Move’s desperate times have given rise to such desperate measures does not warrant injunctive relief.”
Gene Boxer | Credit: CoStar
In an emailed statement to Inman, CoStar Group General Counsel Gene Boxer continued to characterize Move’s lawsuit as “a PR stunt” and “speculative nonsense.”
“To be clear, CoStar has never had interest in Realtor.com’s strategies or alleged trade secrets, as its ‘lead diversion’ tactics are anathema to Homes.com’s agent and user-friendly ‘your listing, your lead’ model,” he said. “Move’s lawsuit is based on false, and now shifting, premises.”
“To start, Move filed a case accusing CoStar of using Move documents to build a rival news business. This accusation was completely false, as we said publicly at the time. Nothing more than a PR stunt,” he added. “As Move knows, CoStar doesn’t have any of those documents, and certainly hasn’t used them … Move then tried to salvage its case with an even weaker new theory: admitting that — in fact — no one at CoStar is using any stale Move documents, but maybe, just maybe, an employee who edits descriptions of New York condos might use documents he doesn’t have, to do a job he doesn’t have: directing CoStar’s search engine optimization. This is speculative nonsense.”
A Realtor.com spokesperson declined to comment on Move’s latest filing, noting the company doesn’t make statements on “pending litigation.”
Judge Wu will make a ruling on Move’s amended preliminary injunction and limited expedited discovery request on Sept. 23.
Read the full filing below:
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by Brandon Newman | Aug 19, 2024 | Industry, News Feed
This report is available exclusively to subscribers of Inman Intel, the data and research arm of Inman offering deep insights and market intelligence on the business of residential real estate and proptech. Subscribe today.
For a brief moment this month, mortgage rates plunged below the 6.5 percent mark — down significantly from a recent peak of 7.5 percent in April.
It wasn’t enough.
Consumers say they need rates to fall significantly lower than that before they’ll be willing to buy a home, according to a July survey of 3,000 working U.S. adults conducted by Inman Intel and Dig Insights.
And even once first-time buyers rejoin the fold, they are likely to face the same problem that plagued the housing market in the early pandemic homebuying frenzy: little new inventory to replace the houses that get scooped up.
For this report, Intel analyzed the responses of this survey, which included a group of more than 2,000 adults from across the country who said they were unlikely to buy a home in the next year.
TAKE THE INMAN INTEL INDEX SURVEY FOR AUGUST
Among other topics, Intel asked them how low rates would need to fall before they would seriously reconsider — an attempt to find a so-called “golden rate” that would spur renewed activity in home sales.
- Results from the Inman-Dig Insights consumer survey in July suggest that if rates fell from their recent 7 percent levels down to 5.5 percent, it could provide a meaningful boost to home sales.
- And if rates fell as low as 5.0 percent, the dam might break and release even more once-reluctant homebuyers onto the market.
But this emerging picture also hides some complex layers beneath the surface.
Instead of one clear number, the rate targets that emerged were quite different for renters than they were for homeowners. And coupled with the latest rate forecasts, these dueling dynamics could determine the complexion of the housing market not just for months, but potentially years.
Read Intel’s findings in the full report.
The big picture
High mortgage rates remain a serious obstacle preventing consumers from entering the home market.
First, the top-level findings:
- Of the working adults who said they were “unlikely” to buy a home in the next 12 months, 1 in 10 said they would seriously consider changing their mind if mortgage rates fell as low as 5.5 percent.
- But that share doubles to 1 in 5 in a scenario where rates were to fall to 5.0 percent.
Although mortgage rates can be volatile, forecasts suggest that rates that low may still be years away.
- The Mortgage Bankers Association, for example, projects that rates are on track to hit 5.9 percent only by the fourth quarter of 2025, and may stay in that range through the following year as well.
These results should be taken with a few grains of salt.
For one thing, all of the so-called “unlikely buyers” that Intel surveyed were, by their own admission, not in the market for a home at this time. This means that some of their responses are merely hypothetical, not the result of research and kitchen-table math.
After sitting down with their budget and looking at home prices and monthly payments, it’s plausible that some respondents might give a different response than they provided to the survey.
Still, some clear consumer attitudes emerged in the survey data — with implications for what effect a lower-rate environment might have on transaction volume and buyer-seller dynamics in the years to come.
Back to the future?
Intel’s consumer survey results also illuminate a potential roadmap for the future dynamics between buyers and sellers as rates continue to descend.
Predictably, the survey found that renters are more responsive to small movements in mortgage rates. Current homeowners, on the other hand, need to see bigger declines to nudge them off the sidelines.
Intel tried to quantify just how big the gap was, and where the two groups might end up converging.
- If mortgage rates were to fall a bit further to 6.0 percent — nearly 2 points below their high point in October — it would persuade nearly 9 percent of reluctant-to-buy renters to change course and consider entering the home market.
- Less than half as big a share of reluctant buyers who already own a home would respond the same way. Only 4 percent of this group would show interest in the housing market, given the same 6.0 percent rate assumption.
This dynamic is not hard to explain. The so-called “rate lock-in” effect has been widely discussed throughout the industry, and examined in depth by Intel before.
The vast majority of homeowners fall into one of two categories: they either have no debt on their home, or their current home loan has a much lower rate than they could find on the market any time soon.
With enough time, churn and rate cuts, this dynamic could eventually balance out.
But Intel survey results suggest that it will likely be prevalent even if rates fall a lot more than they’re currently expected to over the next two years.
- If mortgage rates fell below 5.0 percent, it would convince 25 percent of renters to seriously reconsider their reluctance to buy in the next 12 months.
- But sub-5-percent rates would only convince 16 percent of homeowners who are reluctant to buy in the next year to reconsider.
Ultimately, rates in the 5 percent range — and especially the lower fives — could be a sweet spot that unlocks a significant amount of new buyers and new housing inventory.
But even in that range, the demand from buyers could outpace the supply of existing homes hitting the MLS. It’s a dynamic that could bring back seller’s market dynamics throughout much of the country as more buyers compete for each available listing.
What might it take to avoid this kind of imbalanced buyer frenzy? More new housing construction could be part of the puzzle. But if builders can’t keep up, rates might have to fall to 4 percent or lower before renters and homeowners warm to the housing market at similar rates, Intel survey results suggest.
And that’s not likely to happen any time soon.
About the Inman-Dig Insights Consumer Survey
The Inman-Dig Insights consumer survey was conducted from July 5 through July 7 to gauge the opinions and behaviors of Americans related to homebuying.
The survey sampled a diverse group of 3,000 American adults, ranging in age from 24 to 65 and employed either full-time or part-time. The participants were selected to produce a broadly representative breakdown by age, gender and region.
Statistical rigor was maintained throughout the study, and the results should be largely representative of attitudes held by U.S. adults with full- or part-time jobs. Both Inman and Dig Insights are majority-owned by Toronto-based Beringer Capital.
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by Brandon Newman | Jul 19, 2024 | Industry, News Feed
Two weeks after filing a theft of trade secrets lawsuit against CoStar Group, Move now wants CoStar to hand over Move-owned files and electronic devices used by former Realtor.com News and Insights Editor James Kaminsky.
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Two weeks after filing a theft of trade secrets lawsuit against competitor CoStar Group, Realtor.com parent company Move, Inc. has asked a judge in California to block CoStar Group’s access to files at the center of the lawsuit.
Move’s attorneys filed the preliminary injunction on Monday with Judge Steve Kim of the U.S. District Court in California, asking the court to block CoStar Group and former Realtor.com News and Insights Editor James Kaminsky’s access to Move-owned files outlining core information about Realtor.com’s N and I editorial budget, audience and revenue numbers, alongside employment summaries for several Move employees.
Move said Kaminsky accessed those files at least 37 times after taking a position as an editor at Homes.com in January. Move wasn’t aware of Kaminsky’s alleged actions until June 3, when a Move employee got an alert that Kaminsky’s Gmail account had opened a core file for the Realtor.com News and Insight team. Move then barred Kaminsky’s Gmail address.
In addition to the preliminary injunction, Move’s counsel also wants CoStar Group to provide a list of electronic devices (e.g., desktop computer, laptop computer, cell phone) Kaminsky has used since joining Homes.com. Move also asked for a forensic inspection of said devices.
“Move easily meets the standards for entry of a preliminary injunction and for an order authorizing limited expedited forensic discovery,” the injunction request read. “With an appropriately crafted Order, the Court can help Move stop further misappropriation of trade secrets, ensure unauthorized access to its computer systems has stopped, prevent more spoliation, and determine where Move’s stolen information has been sent.”
Gene Boxer | Credit: CoStar
In an email to Inman, CoStar Group General Counsel Gene Boxer characterized the preliminary injunction as “a knee-jerk filing” and another “PR stunt” from Realtor.com as competition heats up between the two residential portal behemoths.
“Last week, we noted that plaintiffs with real concerns about trade secrets file for injunctions when they file complaints, and that Move had not, and we predicted that now that we had called them out, they would file such a motion,” Boxer said in a statement to Inman. “That’s exactly what happened. Realtor.com’s motion confirms that they’re using a mid-level employee as a pawn and that they have zero evidence of any involvement by CoStar. None.”
Inman also contacted Realtor.com; however, a company spokesperson said, “[Realtor.com] doesn’t comment on pending litigation.”
The lawsuit is the latest chapter in Move and CoStar Group’s battle over which residential portal can rightfully claim the second-place spot during a pivotal point in a years-long portal war.
CoStar Group caught the industry’s attention in October 2023 when the company announced its residential portal, Homes.com, had drawn 100 million monthly unique visitors in September — a metric that meant Homes.com had grown its traffic by 117 percent in one month.
Despite questions about the correctness of those claims, CoStar Group and Homes.com quickly leaned into messaging about surpassing Realtor.com as the second-most trafficked portal in the U.S., putting $1 billion into a star-studded marketing blitz to drive traffic and memberships to the site.
CoStar Group founder and CEO Andy Florance and Realtor.com CEO Damian Eales spent much of the first quarter of 2024 delivering slight jabs at each other. Both leaders embraced competition and touted the strength of their respective platforms during their Inman Connect New York appearances; however, the stakes have heightened since then.
Eales began putting additional pressure on Florance and CoStar Group in May, using his time at the National Association of Realtors MLS Forum of the Realtors Legislative Meetings to lambast CoStar Group for casting Homes.com Network traffic figures as Homes.com traffic figures.
In July, Move took Eales’ concerns to the Better Business Bureau National Programs’ National Advertising Division, which recommended that CoStar stop using “Homes.com just reached 156M monthly unique visitors” and “Homes.com now has DOUBLE Realtor.com’s traffic” in its ads as both claims are based on traffic for the Homes.com Network.
CoStar Group acquiesced to NAD’s recommendations, with recent advertising highlighting Homes.com’s 100 million monthly unique visitors. The company can still highlight traffic numbers for the Homes.com Network if they “explicitly disclose it in the body of its advertisements.”
The Court will decide on the preliminary injunction during a hearing on Aug. 14.
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