It was the third of September, a day I’ll always remember… Will September 18th be remembered as the day that the Federal Reserve lowers fed funds for the first time since April of 2020? Probably… It is certainly already priced into interest rates. (Fed funds have been in the mid-5’s for a year.) Mortgage interest rates have started to fall making buying a home more affordable again and injecting some new life back into the real estate and home finance business. STRATMOR Group Senior Partner Garth Graham believes the upcoming surge in purchase business will not look like it did the last time the industry saw a wave of new business, and it won’t benefit all lenders equally. Listen in today at 11AM PT as he and STRATMOR Senior Advisors Brett McCracken and Sue Woodard talk about why the ongoing battle between the industry’s largest real estate companies and the Department of Justice over consumer disclosures regarding buyer’s agents is having a massive impact on the real estate business and what lenders can do to prepare. Let’s not forget the wild card of homeowner’s insurance: Allstate has received approval to raise its California homeowners insurance premiums by an average of 34% starting in November, the largest rate increase this year amid the state’s insurance crisis. Well, at least Allstate is not bailing out of doing business in CA! (Today’s podcast is found here and this week’s is sponsored by Stavvy. Moving real estate beyond paper documents. Stavvy is the digital platform that helps real estate professionals grow their business and ditch the paper process. Book a demo today! Hear an interview with Short Solutions Liz Short on how C-Suite executives can define technological goals, streamline processes and integrations, and maximize revenue.)