There's been a jump in the number of houses hitting the market in recent weeks. Hidden among them, there are likely some reasonably priced gems listed by owners willing to negotiate with interested buyers.

Many homes fitting that description are relistings: houses that had been listed previously, but were taken off the market because the owners couldn’t get their asking prices.

Delistings, the counterparts of relistings, surged during the second half of 2025. Every month since June, according to Realtor.com, some 6% of active listings nationwide were yanked off the market -- the highest rate since the metric was introduced in 2022.

Now, some of those sellers are coming back -- and with a different mindset. Toward the end of January, relistings accounted for 11% of the houses for sale nationwide, Compass economist Mike Simonsen reports. That works out to nearly 76,500 places that are now back on the market.

After experiencing months of showings, price cuts and stalled negotiations, frustrated sellers are more willing to bend on prices, concessions and repairs, says Lance Lambert, founder of real estate research firm ResiClub.

Moreover, relistings give buyers “an information advantage,” writes Lambert in an article on FastCompany.com. Buyers can find the prior list price, concessions that may have been offered, how many days the places were on the market and whether any earlier contracts fell apart. Armed with this knowledge, buyers can ensure their offers are tied to “true market-clearing levels.”

“Savvy buyers -- and their agents -- should always do their homework and confirm whether a property was listed in the prior year, how pricing evolved, and why it didn’t sell, as that context can materially strengthen negotiating leverage,” he writes.

How much does it cost to build a house? Surprisingly, the “sticks and bricks” of the typical house in 2024 were responsible for 64% of the cost, the National Association of Home Builders reports. The finished building site was the second-largest cost, at nearly 14%.

Building costs were broken down into eight major stages of construction: interior finishes (24.1%), major system rough-ins (19.2%), framing (16.6%), exterior finishes (13.4%), foundations (10.5%), site work (7.6%), final steps (6.5%), and other costs (2.1%).

Builders pocketed an average of 11% in profit, NAHB reports.

Time is slowly eroding the so-called “lock-in effect,” in which current homeowners don’t want to give up their low-rate mortgages.

There were already a large percentage of loans below 4% prior to the pandemic. And by the first quarter of 2022, 65% were below 4%. Nearly 86% were below 5%.

But as of last year’s third quarter, data from the Federal Housing Finance Agency show that 51.5% of active mortgages are below 4%, and 68.6% are under 5%.

On the flip side, the percentage of mortgages over 6% increased by more than 4% between the third quarters of 2024 and 2025.

Beware of so-called experts who say you can improve your credit score by filing a false report of identity theft.

Not only is doing so "a crime that could get you a fine, imprisonment or both," per a post on the Federal Trade Commission's website, but it would also leave your credit worse off than before.

Scammers claiming they can repair your credit may encourage you to dispute information in your credit report that you know is correct. They’ll also push you to pay them in advance, tell you to lie on loan or credit applications, and discourage you from contacting the credit bureaus directly.

Legally, credit repair outfits cannot remove information from your credit file if it’s up-to-date and accurate. In fact, it’s illegal for credit repair companies to lie about what they can do, or charge you before they help you.

Credit repair companies must explain your legal rights in a written contract that details the services they’ll perform, how long it will take to get results, and the total cost you’ll pay. They must also explain your three-day right to cancel without any charge and provide you with a cancellation form.

In short, anything a credit repair company can do legally, you can do on your own at little or no cost. The best way to improve your credit is to show, over time, that you pay your debts punctually.

It’s not any easier to time the housing market than it is the stock market. So don’t give much credence to reports that offer the "best months" to buy or sell, or the "best days of the week" to put your house on the market.

These dates are based on when a sale closed, not when a sales contract is signed. And since it takes roughly 40 days from the contract signing to settlement, the actual “best times” are about a month and a half earlier.

Rather than relying on the calendar, the best way to shop for a house is probably to compare mortgage rates, advises Matt Schulz, chief consumer finance analyst at LendingTree.

“A fraction of a point difference can mean tens of thousands of dollars in savings over the life of a mortgage,” says Schulz in a recent Lending Tree article. “If you don’t take the time to comparison shop, there’s a good chance you’ll pay more than you need to.”

America used to be a nation of nomads. In the 1960s, about 20% of Americans packed up and moved in a given year. But by 2024, that number had dropped to 11%, according to U.S. Census Bureau data analyzed by real estate company Point2Homes.

What hasn't changed, however, is that people who do choose to move still need help with the heavy stuff. For many, that means hiring professional movers. Nationwide, there are an estimated 17,000 household moving companies. Many of them are great -- but there are also plenty of rotten apples to watch out for.

Complaints against moving companies are among the most frequently fielded by local consumer agencies. Some customers make the mistake of eagerly accepting a lowball estimate, only to have their goods held for ransom later. Others pay their movers too much in advance, or even sign blank contracts.

But the biggest mistake consumers make is not verifying that the movers they are considering are legitimate.

That should be the very first thing everyone does, says Ron Harper, a paralegal in Cambridge, Ontario. Movers should be forthcoming with their license numbers and insurance information. If they don't, that’s an “automatic disqualifier,” he advises.

One Florida resident reportedly hired a local mover without bothering to determine if the company was licensed, only to run into a boatload of trouble. The mover arrived late, damaged the customer's property and then wanted an additional $1,300 to unload the truck. In another instance, an investor lost a $2,000 deposit to a “moving broker” who disappeared before the family was ready to move.

Even if a company readily provides its official documentation, you should still check it out. For local movers, check with your state’s consumer affairs agency. For long-distance movers, make sure they are registered with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. It’s a “huge red flag” if they are not listed, says Riggs Powell, who operates a moving and storage company in Utah.

While you’re at it, look into their complaint records. Locally, check with the Better Business Bureau or your consumer affairs agency. On the national level, try the Federal Trade Commission and the FMCSA.

Of course, you also should look at the company's online reviews. Dissatisfied customers are not shy about voicing their displeasure, so "scour the internet" for complaints, advises law professor Danny Karon.

Next, always request bids from more than one company. Beware of low bids, estimates made over the phone or verbal quotes. Ideally, “at least three separate companies (would) send a representative to your home to provide a detailed written estimate,” says Harper.

The estimate is the basis for your contract, so it should include all the services the mover will provide, plus their costs: the weight or size of the load, packing services, mileage, timing, appliance services and stair navigation. For long-distance moves, Powell recommends asking for a binding estimate so “the price won’t jump once your stuff is on the truck.”

When you receive a contract, read it and make an effort to understand what it says. “It’s taxing,” admits Karon, but it’s necessary. “You’ll likely find things you don’t like, such as forced arbitration and liability waivers, neither or which favors you.”

“Read every word, and don’t rush,” Powell advises. “Ask the mover to walk you through any confusing sections. If he won’t take the time to explain something, that’s a sign to walk away.”

Try to negotiate out the clauses that you're uncomfortable with. If you can’t, go elsewhere, Karon advises -- or accept that “at least you’ll know the consequences if things go badly.”

Harper says the contract should clearly state the mover’s liability for your belongings, pick-up and delivery dates and all payment terms. If the contract is not consistent with the estimate, he warns, don’t sign it until you are told why -- in writing. “The only defense is vigilance,” agrees Florida attorney Thomas Fighter.

Watch in particularly for weight estimate discrepancies, suggests Derek Mills of Texas-based moving company Square Cow. “If a company refuses to provide a contract or uses excessive industry jargon to confuse you, walk away.”

Also avoid movers who want a large down payment -- in cash. “Low bids often indicate potential problems later,” warns Mills.

Fighter says he has had clients lose thousands to companies they only checked out online. In one case, the family paid half in advance, only to have the company disappear the very next day.

One big sign that a mover is trouble is that it only accepts cash or requires large deposits upfront.

“It may be acceptable to pay a small deposit,” advises Harper, but most reputable movers are adequately funded and do not need your money to operate.

So don’t ante up more than 25% at most, the experts advise, and do so with a credit card for further protection.

“You get what you pay for” is a popular refrain among real estate agents who try to defend their commissions. But according to a new report, when buying or selling a house, you can get all the service conventional agents offer without having to pay the going rate.

The report, from the Consumer Policy Center, says that fears about low-fee agents offering a lower quality of service are “unfounded.”

“This is not to argue that (consumers) stop using real estate agents, whose knowledge and expertise can be very valuable,” writes CPC Senior Fellow Mark Nadel, “just that they’ve been grossly overpaying for those agents' services due to a lack of effective price competition among agents.”

Like many stockbroker and travel agent fees prior to the 1980s, the report maintains, traditional realty agent fees are “ridiculously excessive.” If there were more price competition among agents, it says, as much as $30 billion annually would be put back into the pockets of consumers.

In urging buyers and sellers to consider low-fee agents, the report exposes the misconceptions that lead consumers to accept current commission rates as reasonable and justified. To be sure, consumers should continue to choose their agents based on experience, skills and track record, as well as their fees. But “a lower fee should be a plus, not a minus,” writes Nadel.

It’s natural to assume there must be something lacking with agents who charge as little as half the going commission rate. After all, buying a house is one of the largest financial transactions people will ever undertake, so many choose to play it safe.

Nadel argues that realty agents are not like other commissioned salespeople, for whom a commission based on the percentage of the sales price is warranted. He calls it “a flawed analogy” to think that they are.

For most salespeople, the price of the goods or services they sell is set to recover their employer’s costs -- including a commission -- plus a specific profit. So, if a salesperson doubles their sales, they also double their commission. In these cases, commissions incentivize people to sell more.

But in real estate, the price is not set to recover the seller’s cost plus a profit. Rather, the seller aims to secure the highest price possible. “Selling a $900,000 home does not generate triple the 'profit' of selling a $300,000 home,” Nadel writes.

The time and costs incurred by agents are “generally unrelated” to the home’s price, he says. Agents perform the same tasks whether they sell a $300,000 house or one priced at $900,000. Yet at a 3% commission, they earn $9,000 on the first house and $27,000 on the second.

At the same time, many agents think nothing of paying electricians or painters the same hourly rates to prepare a $900,000 house for sale as they pay them to work on a $300,000 property.

If a traditional listing agent tells you that a low-fee agent will skimp on the quality of the services they offer, Nadel suggests sellers turn the tables: “Ask the listing agent why they charge double for the same level of work they would do for selling a home priced at half as much,” he says.

The CPC expert has additional recommendations:

-- Sellers should stipulate in the listing agreement that the seller retains any funds offered to pay the buyer’s agent if that agent has already offered to accept a lower fee.

Normally, if the selling agent charges 6%, it's split with the buyer’s agent, 50-50 -- they each get 3%. But if the buyer’s agent charges their client just 1%, under standard agreements, the seller’s agent would stand to rake in 5%. Rather, the savvy seller should make sure the other 2% reverts back to them.

By demanding that the extra commission returns to the seller, the seller can bargain with the buyer about how the extra funds will be allocated -- perhaps back to the buyer -- rather than allowing them to passively flow as a bonus to the listing agent.

-- Sometimes, buyers are offered the choice to skip viewing any houses in which the seller has declined to pay the buyer-agent’s fee. “Refuse that option,” says Nadel. Do not allow agents to screen out houses that do not expressly offer buyer-agent co-op fees.

You may be offered such a choice as a way to avoid having to pay the negotiated fee to the buyer’s agent, as well as the entire commission. But your concern should be your total cost, including commissions, rather than whether the commissions are included in the price of the house.

-- Sellers would do well to consider their net yield rather than their gross. “The dollar figure that should matter to the seller is the amount they net after both agents are paid,” the report advises. It's possible, after all, that a lower offer made through a low-fee agent can result in a higher yield than a higher bid from a full-cost agent.

-- To protect against agents who intentionally overlook houses represented by low-fee agents, continue to use online search engines and broker websites to look for houses that meet your criteria. In other words, do as much of the legwork as possible on your own; don’t rely on the agent to do it for you.

This, says Nadel, will keep your agent honest.