While the specifics of each situation vary, the core issues tend to remain the same. Whether it is about managing relationships, tackling financial hurdles, or making decisions about the future, the underlying threads are often preparation, communication, and perspective.

If there’s one piece of advice I repeat time and again, it’s this: Take a step back and think before you act. In moments of stress or uncertainty, it’s easy to let emotions take the wheel.

But whether dealing with a family disagreement, a career decision, or a financial setback, the best outcomes usually come from a calm, informed approach. Gather the facts. Ask for help if you need it.

And remember, reacting impulsively often creates more problems than it solves.

One area where this advice is especially true is in personal relationships. Misunderstandings and conflicts often arise not because people are inherently at odds, but because expectations are not clearly communicated.

Whether with a relative, a friend, or a neighbor, taking the time to listen, clarify, and approach the situation with empathy can make all the difference. It is not about avoiding conflict altogether, which is impossible, but about handling it in a way that strengthens, rather than weakens, the connection.

Even when this does not solve the problem, it invariably puts you in a better position.

Another recurring theme I noticed is the challenge of managing change. Transitions can feel overwhelming. The key is to focus on what you can control and approach the process methodically.

Big changes rarely go perfectly according to plan, but with preparation and flexibility, they can be managed. This is another area where research and knowing when to ask for help can make a huge difference.

People often struggle with financial decisions, such as whether to rent or own. Thinking long-term and avoiding the excitement will lead to a successful outcome.

It is tempting to focus on immediate gratification or short-term fixes, but the best financial choices prioritize stability and future goals. Take the time to understand your options, weigh the risks, and make decisions that align with your values and priorities.

I often remind people that not every problem requires a drastic solution. Sometimes the best course is to pause, reassess, and take small, deliberate steps.

The path to resolution is rarely a straight line, but with patience, persistence, a willingness to learn, and deliberate action, people can navigate even the toughest situations.

Finally, because sometimes life’s problems can leave you standing in a lawyer’s lobby, make sure that when problems do occur, you take detailed notes and lots of pictures. There have been many times in my practice when what might have seemed like an insignificant detail provided by my client has turned a tough case into a favorable resolution.

Board-certified real estate lawyer Gary Singer writes about industry legal matters and the housing market. To ask him a question, email him at gary@garysingerlaw.com, or go to SunSentinel.com/askpro. 

WASHINGTON (AP) — The average rate on a 30-year U.S. mortgage fell to its lowest level of 2025 this week, an encouraging sign for prospective home buyers.

The average long-term mortgage rate dipped to 6.15% from 6.18% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Wednesday. That’s the lowest average long-term rate since October 3, 2024 when it dipped to 6.12% before shooting back up. One year ago, the rate averaged 6.91%.

Borrowing costs on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages, popular with homeowners refinancing their home loans, fell this week to 5.44% from 5.50% the previous week. A year ago it averaged 6.13%, Freddie Mac said.

Mortgage rates are influenced by several factors, from the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy decisions to bond market investors’ expectations for the economy and inflation. They generally follow the trajectory of the 10-year Treasury yield, which lenders use as a guide to pricing home loans.

The 10-year yield was at 4.14% at midday Wednesday, down a touch from last week’s 4.15%.

The average rate on a 30-year mortgage has been mostly holding steady in recent weeks since Oct. 30 when it dropped to 6.17%, which at the time was its lowest level in more than a year.

Mortgage rates began easing in July in anticipation of a series of Fed rate cuts, which began in September and continued this month.

The Fed doesn’t set mortgage rates, but when it cuts its short-term rate that can signal lower inflation or slower economic growth ahead, which can drive investors to buy U.S. government bonds. That can help lower yields on long-term U.S. Treasurys, which can result in lower mortgage rates.

Even so, Fed rate cuts don’t always translate into lower mortgage rates.

Home shoppers who can afford to pay cash or finance at current mortgage rates are in a more favorable position than they were a year ago. Home listings are up sharply from 2024, and many sellers have resorted to lowering their initial asking price as homes take longer to sell, according to data from Realtor.com.

Still, affordability remains a challenge for aspiring homeowners, especially first-time buyers who don’t have equity from an existing home to put toward a new home purchase. Uncertainty over the economy and job market are also keeping many would-be buyers on the sidelines.

Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes rose in November from the previous month, but slowed compared to a year earlier for the first time since May despite average long-term mortgage rates holding near their low point for the year. Through the first 11 months of this year, home sales are down 0.5% compared to the same period last year.

Economists generally forecast that the average rate on a 30-year mortgage will remain slightly above 6% next year.

In 2025, the local real estate market was soft, with high insurance costs and mortgage rates, uncertainty in the condo market and demand that’s continuing to cool following pandemic-era highs.

But the Federal Reserve has been cutting interest rates, and mortgage rates are expected to drop in the new year, too. Lower interest and mortgage rates will mean more people will be interested in buying, driving up competition and prices, which may give the advantage to sellers.

Read the full story at MiamiHerald.com

A: Living in a community association means following a set of rules and regulations you agreed to when you purchased your home. These rules often govern how you decorate your home and yard, even during the holidays.

While it is frustrating to be told to take down your holiday decorations, your association likely has the authority to enforce such rules, depending on your community’s governing documents.

Your first step is to review your association’s governing documents, which typically include the Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions, bylaws, and any rules or guidelines. These documents outline what is and is not allowed in your neighborhood, including rules on holiday decorations.

Some HOAs have specific restrictions on the type, size, or timing of decorations, while others may prohibit certain displays altogether.

If your decorations violate these rules, your association has the right to ask you to remove them and may impose fines if you fail to comply.

If you believe the HOA’s request is unreasonable or unsupported by the governing documents, you can take steps to address the issue.

Start by documenting everything. Keep a record of all communication from the HOA, including letters, emails, and notices. Take photos of your decorations to show how they looked and how they were displayed. This documentation will be helpful if you decide to challenge your community’s decision.

Next, contact the HOA board or management company to discuss the situation. Be polite but firm, and ask for clarification on the specific rule or guideline your decorations are allegedly violating.

If the rule is vague or inconsistently enforced, you may have grounds to push back. In some cases, a conversation with your HOA can lead to a resolution.

However, if management insists on enforcing the rule and you still disagree, you may be able to escalate the matter.

The best way to do this is to involve your neighbors. If enough of you agree that your community should allow this type of decoration, you may be able to get the rules changed. Petition the board of directors to add your concerns to the agenda for the next HOA meeting, then see if you can gather enough support to change the rules.

If this still doesn’t work, you may even consider running for the Board of Directors so you can shape the community in a way that suits you and your neighbors better than it does now.

Remember, living in an association means balancing your personal preferences with the community’s rules.

While this may feel restrictive at times, such as when you want to put up holiday decorations, it can also be beneficial to know that your neighbors won’t be able to put up decorations in a style you don’t care for.

Board-certified real estate lawyer Gary Singer writes about industry legal matters and the housing market. To ask him a question, email him at gary@garysingerlaw.com, or go to SunSentinel.com/askpro. 

WASHINGTON (AP) — The average rate on a 30-year U.S. mortgage ticked down modestly this week, remaining in the same narrow range of the past two months.

The average long-term mortgage rate fell to 6.18% from 6.21% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Wednesday. A year ago, the rate averaged 6.85%.

Borrowing costs on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages, popular with homeowners refinancing their home loans, rose this week. The rate averaged 5.50%, up from 5.47% last week. A year ago it averaged 6%, Freddie Mac said.

Mortgage rates are influenced by several factors, from the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy decisions to bond market investors’ expectations for the economy and inflation. They generally follow the trajectory of the 10-year Treasury yield, which lenders use as a guide to pricing home loans.

The 10-year yield was at 4.15% at midday Wednesday, up modestly from last week’s 4.12%.

The average rate on a 30-year mortgage has been mostly holding steady in recent weeks since Oct. 30 when it dropped to 6.17%, its lowest level in more than a year.

Mortgage rates began easing in July in anticipation of a series of Fed rate cuts, which began in September and continued this month.

The Fed doesn’t set mortgage rates, but when it cuts its short-term rate that can signal lower inflation or slower economic growth ahead, which can drive investors to buy U.S. government bonds. That can help lower yields on long-term U.S. Treasurys, which can result in lower mortgage rates.

Even so, Fed rate cuts don’t always translate into lower mortgage rates.

Home shoppers who can afford to pay cash or finance at current mortgage rates are in a more favorable position than they were a year ago. Home listings are up sharply from last year, and many sellers have resorted to lowering their initial asking price as homes take longer to sell, according to data from Realtor.com.

Still, affordability remains a challenge for many aspiring homeowners, especially first-time buyers who don’t have equity from an existing home to put toward a new home purchase. Uncertainty over the economy and job market are also keeping many would-be buyers on the sidelines.

Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes rose in November from the previous month, but slowed compared to a year earlier for the first time since May despite average long-term mortgage rates holding near their low point for the year. Through the first 11 months of this year, home sales are down 0.5% compared to the same period last year.

Economists generally forecast that the average rate on a 30-year mortgage will remain slightly above 6% next year.

Their principal residences north of the U.S. border? Or the condos, second homes and favorite hotels they’ve traditionally visited in the warmer climes of Southeast Florida?

All around the region, those questions are prevalent in the minds of hoteliers, tourism promoters and other travel industry professionals who have seen sharp declines in visits this year from Canadians, who annually constitute the state’s largest block of international visitors during the winter travel season. Many of the visitors say they are tired of hearing their country characterized as the “51st state” by President Donald Trump. Others are offended by more stringent scrutiny when crossing over the border and are opting for Mexico. They also complain about higher travel and health insurance costs, as well as the tariff wars that have helped raise prices.

Trump has averred that Canadian sentiment will change once a new trade deal is worked out.

Over the years, Canadians have come in numbers that far and away outstrip any other country of origin among international tourists visiting Florida, both U.S. and Canadian officials say.

“We stay longer and we spend more because many people own second homes here,” said Sylvia Cesaratto, the Canadian consul general based in Miami.

Cesaratto, who took over her post in 2022, said that in 2024, the number of Americans traveling into Canada was 14 million, while the number of Canadians heading south into the U.S. was 20 million.

Last year, 3.3 million Canadians came to Florida, which she called “the top destination in the U.S. for Canadians by a wide margin.”

But between January and September in 2025, the number of Canadians visiting the U.S. was down 21%. And sentiment among Canadians toward planning trips to the U.S. in the next 12 months has also shown a steady decline.

Hoteliers report a ripple effect on the restaurants, retail operations and other local businesses that make money from the visitors.

At the Atlantic Hotel & Spa across State Road A1A from Fort Lauderdale Beach, Amy Faulkner, the director of sales and marketing, has been scrambling to find replacement visitors for Canadians who decided to stay home.

“We are down 4.9% for the first six months, since January 2025,” she said in an interview at the condo-hotel hotel, where owners can rent their units to short- to intermediate-term visitors. Many of the owners — and renters — are Canadians.

“This hotel is set up to be a liveable situation for Canadians who can stay up to six months,” Faulkner said. “Their not coming is not like I’m losing two or three nights. I’m losing three months. My spa is losing money. My restaurant is losing money. My valet is losing money.”

Other hotels catering to Canadians face similar impacts, she said, as do restaurants, transportation providers and attractions such as museums.

“It’s not just me,” she said. “It’s affecting all of us. We need to make up for this loss of Canadian business. We miss them. We feel the pain. We want them back.”

She said she is working on an offer to lure them back.

In Hollywood, Richard Clevet, owner and proprietor of multiple 20- to 30-room hotels and motels in the city since he arrived in South Florida from Quebec several decades ago, said he wishes the political rhetoric over tariffs, border crossings and the “51st state” would evaporate.

“It was difficult last spring,” he said. “March was bad. April was bad.”

“It started very slow in November,” Clavet added. “We had a few come in. The first snowstorm generated a lot of phone calls. A lot of them are going to hit the road this Friday night as soon as school and offices are closed.”

He was expecting 30 to 35 people with children over the weekend. “You’ll see those blue and white tags headed this way for a two-week stay,” he said.

In addition, 2026 winter bookings for Richard’s Motel, Richard’s Hotel and Richard’s Pet Friendly, among others, appear to be looking up.

“We do have good reservations coming this winter,” he said. “This coming weekend, a lot of reservations are coming in. Hopefully it’s going to bounce back and they’ll forget about the tariff issues.”

Alternate strategies

At the direction of her homeowners association, Faulkner, the Atlantic resort’s sales and marketing executive, said she ended up looking southward — to Brazil. In late September, she joined a Visit Lauderdale mission to Sao Paolo to meet with travel agents and tour operatives there.

The result for the Atlantic: 10 bookings.

Milton Segarra, president and CEO of Discover the Palm Beaches, the tourism marketing agency for Palm Beach County, said he journeyed north to Canada to pitch the county to the Canadian travel agents.

The county, which he said has seen a 4.6% decline in Canadian visits in 2025, is expected to be among those that have the lowest drop among tourist destinations as a result of the effort.

“The period that is pretty much ‘high season’ for us is November to April,” he said. “That’s where you see the bulk of Canadians visiting the Palm Beaches.”

“We did several sales and marketing and public relations events including Canada,” he said. “That paid off.”

Airlines such as Air Canada and Porter Airlines “kept the flights over the season. Right now Canadians have great access to the Palm Beaches from Montreal and Toronto.”

Earlier this month, Porter added seasonal flights at Palm Beach International, Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International and Orlando International airports.

Overall, international visits are expected to grow by 10%, with many tourists arriving from the United Kingdom, Germany and Brazil, Segarra said.

“Even though we saw that decline from Canadians, we saw an increase from other international destinations,” Segarra added.

Hope springs eternal

Although 2025 figures for Canadian airline passenger traffic generated by Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport showed year-over-year declines between April and September, the pace of the decrease appears to be easing.

“The most recent data point in October shows the September [and third quarter] decline to be cut in half,” said Ted Botimer, vice president of research, strategy and revenue management at Visit Lauderdale. The agency says 1.1 million Canadians visit the Greater Fort Lauderdale area annually.

“While it is not prudent to extrapolate off a single data point, October performance gives hope that the reduction of Canadian travel will be significantly less as we enter the peak season. The rhetoric has calmed between Washington and Ottawa of late, but the customer sentiment [as surveyed by X Border Canada] remains low. But the sentiment does not reflect the current actions of traveling Canadians — thank goodness!”

He added that while there will be a small year-over-year performance decline in the first quarter of next year, “Greater Fort Lauderdale and Hollywood should continue to outperform the rest of the U.S. during the peak, just as in 2025.”

Similar sentiment seems to apply among developers who are building residential projects in cities where Canadians typically have been steady residential real estate buyers over the years, even though recent analyses show fewer are looking to buy.

According to Cesaretto, the consul general, “we are also the top foreign buyers of residential real estate.”

“That’s not only in Florida but all of the U.S., as well,” she said. “In Florida we believe in 2024 there was about $2.5 billion in purchases by Canadians. We typically buy single-family homes or condos in small coastal communities. Those communities will feel the absence of Canadians this year.”

But Ari Pearl, whose Mondrian Hallandale Beach Residences, a 27-story luxury high-rise project, is showing units to would-be buyers, and Canadians are among them.

“Canadian buyers will continue to come because South Florida to them isn’t just a vacation destination,” he said. “It’s where their family lives now and it’s where they plan to live in their retirement for their second homes. South Florida is still the most convenient resort or tropical destination for Canadians.”

“I don’t see traffic from Canada coming to a halt or slowing down,” he added, noting that “Hallandale has a major snowbird population.”

Ultimately, Cesaretto believes the U.S. and Canada will work their way through the political tensions.

“We’ll get past this,” she said. “Writ large, Canadians love Florida. Canadians are welcomed by Americans and vice versa. Americans love to see that Canadians at their condo buildings are back.”

And this past Friday, Richard Clevet was gearing up for an early evening outdoor gathering of French Canadians at Richard’s Motel — complete with free hot dogs and a 7-foot snowman — to welcome newly arrived guests.

Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes rose in November from the previous month, but slowed compared to a year earlier for the first time since May despite average long-term mortgage rates holding near their low point for the year.

Existing home sales rose 0.5% in last month from October to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.13 million units, the National Association of Realtors said Friday.

Sales fell 1% compared with November last year. The latest sales figure came in slightly below the 4.14 million pace economists were expecting, according to FactSet.

Through the first 11 months of this year, home sales are down 0.5% compared to the same period last year.

“It’s possible that 2025, unless December (sales) figures really improve, we may be technically slightly down from one year ago,” said Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist.

One factor limiting home sales is weaker demand for condominiums. Sales of condos are down 6% so far this year, Yun noted.

Despite sluggish sales, home prices continued to climb last month. The national median sales price increased 1.2% in November from a year earlier to $409,200, an all-time high for any November on data going back to 1999.

Home prices have risen on an annual basis for 29 months in a row, even as the housing market has been mired in a slump that began in 2022 when mortgage rates began climbing from historic lows. Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes sank last year to their lowest level in nearly 30 years.

Sales have been stuck at around a 4-million annual pace now going back to 2023. That’s well short of the 5.2-million annual pace that’s historically been the norm.

Home sales got a boost this fall as the average rate on a 30-year mortgage declined at the end of October to 6.17%, the lowest level in more than a year.

Even so, affordability remains a challenge for many aspiring homeowners, especially first-time buyers who don’t have equity from an existing home to put toward a new home purchase. Uncertainty over the economy and job market are also keeping many would-be buyers on the sidelines.

A shortage of homes for sale, especially in the more affordable end of the market, continues to weigh especially on first-time homebuyers. They accounted for 30% of homes sales last month. Historically, they made up 40% of home sales.

An annual survey of homebuyers by NAR showed first-time buyers accounted for an all-time low 21% of home purchases between July 2024 and June 2025, while the average age of such homebuyers rose to a record-high of 40.

Homes purchased last month likely went under contract in September and October, when the average rate on a 30-year mortgage ranged from 6.5% to 6.17%, according to Freddie Mac. Mortgage rates have mostly remained close to their October low in recent weeks.

Home shoppers who can afford to buy at current mortgage rates benefited from a wider selection of properties on the market last month than a year ago, although the number of homes for sale in November declined from the previous month.

There were 1.43 million unsold homes at the end of last month, down 5.9% from October and up 7.5% from November last year, NAR said.

The latest inventory snapshot remains well below the roughly 2 million homes for sale that was typical before the COVID-19 pandemic.

November’s month-end inventory translates to a 4.2-month supply at the current sales pace. Traditionally, a 5- to 6-month supply is considered a balanced market between buyers and sellers.

Yun is forecasting that existing U.S. home sales will jump 14% next year. That’s more optimistic than several other housing economist forecasts, which range from a 1.7% to 9% increase.

Economists generally forecast that the average rate on a 30-year mortgage will remain slightly above 6% next year.

Florida and Texas are seeing more newly built homes “than anywhere else in the country,” leading some buyers to back out of deals because they feel they might find a better option, according to Redfin, a real estate data and service provider.

About 53,000 home-purchase agreements — or 15.1% of homes that went under contract in October — got canceled in the U.S. that month, according to a recent Redfin analysis. That’s up from 14.3% in October 2024.

And several metropolitan parts of Florida saw higher cancellation rates in October when compared to a year earlier:

— Fort Lauderdale region: A fifth of overall pending sales, or 20%, fell out of contract in October, or higher than the 17.5% recorded in October 2024.

— Miami region: 17.6% of pending sales fell out of contract in October. It was 16.6% a year earlier.

— Orlando region: 19.1% of pending sales fell out of contract in October, higher than the 18.6% documented a year earlier.

— Jacksonville region: 19.2% of pending sales fell out of contract in October. It was 18.9% in October 2024.

Still, not all large metropolitan areas in Florida experienced higher cancellation rates.

The West Palm Beach region saw 14.1% of pending sales fall out of contract in October, the same as a year earlier. The Tampa region had 19.1% of pending sales fall out of contract in October, or less than the 22.2% recorded a year earlier.

Redfin’s analysis relied on MLS pending-sales data. “The data is seasonal, which is why it compared this October to past Octobers,” Redfin said.

Contributing factors

Buyers seeing more new homes in Florida and Texas likely is a contributing factor to why they’re backing out of purchases. Other factors could be homeowner association fees and insurance rates.

Dave Magua, a Keyes Company broker associate, put together a report about home-sale cancellations in Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties.

He found six key drivers behind the cancellations:

— Insurance costs have soared in Florida, with homeowners paying more than $3,000 above the national average. This leads to unpredictable and unaffordable long-term ownership costs, and buyers often don’t know about these “true costs” until after signing a contract, Magua’s report states.

— An inventory surge in available homes has “eliminated buyer urgency and shifted all negotiating power to buyers,” which leads to be people backing away from deals in hopes of something better.

— More sellers would rather pull a home off the market rather than reduce the price, and the South Florida market leads the nation in delisted homes, according to Magua’s report.

— Uncertainty and anxiety about the economy, job security and market direction is leading to a “wait-and-see mentality.”

— Hurricanes and other natural disasters create “climate anxiety” among buyers who then reconsider buying in South Florida.

— Home-appraisal gaps are forcing some buyers either to pay the difference or walk away. These gaps can be caused by factors such as mortgage rate volatility or fluctuating interest rates.

“One moment (the interest rate) is 6.1%, then the next day it’s at 6.237%,” Magua said. “Debt ratio is so tight right now.”

If, hypothetically, a prospective buyer believes their monthly payment will be $1,000 but then the interest rate changes and their payment becomes $1,075, that can force people to walk away, Magua said.

“At the end of the day it’s going to come down to cost of living,” Magua said. “That figure is scaring people.”

Home prices

The median sale price for Broward County single-family homes in October was $611,250, which was a decrease from the median sale price in July of $620,000, according to the Broward, Palm Beaches and St. Lucie Realtors.

The median sale price for townhomes and condos was $259,000, which also is a decrease from July when it was $265,000.

The median sale price for Palm Beach County single-family homes in October was $643,000, which is higher than the median sale price in July when it was $613,250. The median sale price for townhomes and condos was $315,000, which also is higher than it was in July at $300,500.

This aligns with what Magua is seeing in the market, which is that cancellations are highest in Broward County at more than 21%. In Palm Beach County, the cancellations are at nearly 18%.

Magua predicts the market will remain stagnant for the first three months of 2026.

“What you’re really seeing at the end of the day is a market correction,” Magua said. “It hurts and it’s really the market correcting itself slowly.”

The average rate on a 30-year U.S. mortgage edged lower this week, staying relatively close to its low for the year.

The decline brings the average long-term mortgage rate to 6.21% from 6.22% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday. A year ago, the rate averaged 6.72%.

Borrowing costs on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages, popular with homeowners refinancing their home loans, also fell this week. The rate averaged 5.47%, down from 5.54% last week. A year ago, it averaged 5.92%, Freddie Mac said.

Mortgage rates are influenced by several factors, from the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy decisions to bond market investors’ expectations for the economy and inflation. They generally follow the trajectory of the 10-year Treasury yield, which lenders use as a guide to pricing home loans.

The 10-year yield was at 4.12% at midday Thursday, unchanged from a week ago.

The average rate on a 30-year mortgage has been mostly holding steady in recent weeks since it dropped to 6.17%, its lowest level in more than a year, on Oct. 30.

Mortgage rates began easing in July in anticipation of a series of Fed rate cuts, which began in September and continued this month. An encouraging report on inflation on Thursday could give the central bank cause to keep cutting interest rates next year.

The Fed doesn’t set mortgage rates, but when it cuts its short-term rate that can signal lower inflation or slower economic growth ahead, which can drive investors to buy U.S. government bonds. That can help lower yields on long-term U.S. Treasurys, which can result in lower mortgage rates.

Even so, Fed rate cuts don’t always translate into lower mortgage rates. That’s what happened in the fall of 2024 after the central bank cut its main rate for the first time in more than four years. Instead of falling, mortgage rates marched higher, eventually cresting above 7% in January this year. At that time, the 10-year Treasury yield was climbing toward 5%.

This year’s late-summer pullback in rates helped lift sales of previously occupied U.S. homes in October on an annual basis for the fourth straight month.

Home shoppers who can afford to pay cash or finance at current mortgage rates are in a more favorable position than they were a year ago. Home listings are up sharply from last year, and many sellers have resorted to lowering their initial asking price as homes take longer to sell, according to data from Realtor.com.

“Mortgage rates have eased into the low-6% range and inventory remains well above last year’s levels, giving buyers more options and greater flexibility,” said Hannah Jones, senior economic research analyst at Realtor.com.

Still, affordability remains a challenge for many aspiring homeowners, especially first-time buyers who don’t have equity from an existing home to put toward a new home purchase. Uncertainty over the economy and job market are also keeping many would-be buyers on the sidelines.

Homeowners eager to refinance their home loan to a lower rate have benefited from easing mortgage rates.

Applications for mortgage refinance loans made up 59% of all home loan applications last week, the highest level since September, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Economists generally forecast that the average rate on a 30-year mortgage will remain slightly above 6% next year.

A: Dealing with inconsiderate neighbors can be frustrating and stressful. For some people, it might be a barking dog; for others, it could be loud music, late-night parties, or other disturbances.

While local laws and ordinances vary, the general approach to resolving these issues remains the same.

First, handle the situation calmly and respectfully. Although the situation is upsetting, maintaining a decent relationship with your neighbor is important, as you don’t want to turn a disagreement into a feud.

Start by having a polite chat with them. They might not even realize their dog is causing a problem, especially if it barks when they’re not home. Explain the issue and how it affects you. Sometimes, a simple talk can lead to a quick fix.

If the barking persists, keep a record of the disturbances, including dates, times, and duration. This documentation will be useful if you need to escalate the issue later. Consider recording the noise as evidence, but be sure not to record any conversations with your neighbor without their permission or invade their privacy.

In the meantime, try practical solutions like using white noise machines or soundproofing your home to reduce the impact on your daily life.

If talking to your neighbor does not solve the problem, the next step is to review your local noise ordinances or animal control laws.

Many cities and towns have regulations about excessive barking.

Contact your community association’s property manager and your local municipality to report the issue and see if they can assist. Be ready to provide your documentation and any recordings you’ve collected.

Remember that enforcement can take some time, so practice patience.

If none of these methods work, consider consulting an attorney to see if they can provide a solution. For example, you might be able to file a lawsuit for nuisance. Just be aware that a lawsuit can be expensive and time-consuming before you decide to go that route.

Resolving noise issues can take time. Remember to stay persistent but polite.

A situation like this can be incredibly frustrating, but you do not want to make it worse by taking the wrong action.

Board-certified real estate lawyer Gary Singer writes about industry legal matters and the housing market. To ask him a question, email him at gary@garysingerlaw.com, or go to SunSentinel.com/askpro.