As Congress continues its effort to rewrite major portions of the tax code, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) unveiled new polling showing just what the American people are looking for in the legislation. The national survey shows overwhelming bipartisan support for tax provisions that strengthen homeownership, support small business owners and the middle class, and unlock more housing inventory.

Fully 80% of those polled now believe it’s not a good time to buy a home — sharply contrasting with the 69% who felt it was a good time a dozen years ago — prompting the public to look to Congress for practical, pro-housing tax policies that make homeownership more affordable.

The survey found that:

• 92% favor allowing first-time homebuyers to save in tax-free accounts for a down payment.
• 91% want to maintain critical home incentives like the mortgage interest deduction.
• 86% support keeping lower income tax rates for individuals and married couples.
• 83% support the 20% deduction for independent contractors and small businesses.
• 80% support tax incentives to revitalize underserved communities through investment.
• 76% support tax credits to convert unused commercial space into much-needed housing.
• 61% of voters support increasing State and Local Tax (SALT) deduction limits or removing limits altogether.

These are not abstract policy ideas — they directly impact the ability of middle-class Americans to buy, sell, or invest in real estate and for communities to grow sustainably. NAR’s members live and work in every zip code in America and see this play out daily.

Congress has three paths for pro-housing policy: Extend the tax provisions that are working, consider new measures that reflect today’s economy, and resist harmful new “pay-fors.” NAR lays out the polling results and a suite of tax ideas on its federal legislative priorities page at FlyIn.Realtor.

One increasingly urgent issue is the outdated capital gains exemption limits, which haven’t been adjusted since 1997. These limits are now penalizing middle-class homeowners—especially seniors—who choose not to sell their homes to avoid steep tax bills. As a result, fewer homes are entering the market, creating a growing strain on both housing inventory and affordability.

NAR’s poll shows that 67% of voters support doubling the capital gains exemption on the sale of a primary residence — from $250,000 to $500,000 for individuals and from $500,000 to $1 million for couples.

Each year, the exclusion affects more and more middle-class Americans, and a capital gains cliff is fast approaching.

Lawmakers must also resist the temptation to raise taxes on real estate through measures like eliminating 1031 like-kind exchanges or capping deductions for state and local taxes paid by small businesses. These so-called “pay-fors” would backfire by driving up housing costs and limiting consumer choice.

NAR will continue working with members of Congress in both parties to ensure that tax reform reflects the priorities of homeowners, renters, and small businesses. The American people support pro-housing tax policy, and now Congress has the data that proves it.

*The national survey of 1,000 registered voters was conducted by Public Opinion Strategies and Hart Research April 3-6, 2025, and has a margin of error of 3.10%

Patrick Newton is the vice president of advocacy communications and outreach for the National Association of Realtors® and co-host of The Advocacy Scoop podcast along with NAR Chief Advocacy Officer Shannon McGahn.

A US family is on the adventure of a lifetime after selling everything they own in order to explore the high seas.

Despite never having sailed before, Brandon and Amber Morse and their children now live on a catamaran in the Caribbean, realtor.com reports.

And while it hasn’t always been easy, they say the experience has changed them all for the better. The family tells Realtor.com® why they’ve chosen to live life a little differently.

In 2020, the Morses were a typical family living in Idaho with both parents working full-time jobs and a busy schedule of educational and extra-curricular activities for their four kids. However, it was during the COVID-19 pandemic that the family first started toying with the idea of “escaping” their normal.

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“I was working as a nurse at the time, so there was an incredible amount of stress that I was carrying around. Plus, we were also just generally fed up with the 9-to-5 grind — it felt like it was stealing the single most important thing we have in this life, our time, especially from our kids,” says Amber.

“We felt like we were kissing them to bed each night only to send them out the door in the morning not really seeing them until the next bedtime kiss.”

So, the couple first started talking about what life would be like if they quit their jobs, sold one of their cars, rented out their home fully furnished, homeschooled the kids — and then packed everyone into an RV to travel the country.

They then turned it into a reality.

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“When we were three months into our RV trip, we started thinking about going back to the status quo … and it almost felt like a waste because it had taken so much work to cut ties with our former lives,” says Amber.

It was Amber and Brandon’s eldest daughter, Jadyn, who actually started the sailing conversation because she’d had a middle school friend whose family had done it for a few weeks.

They found themselves “down a rabbit hole into YouTube and finding families that were living full time on their sailboats, sailing the world.”

“What I’ve learned is courage begets courage, and it was only because of the baby steps it took to go RVing that we could even see ourselves doing something else,” says Amber.

Selling everything to gain a life filled with adventure

The Morses had purchased their Idaho home only nine months before their pandemic-year RV trip.

The five-bedroom home with a pond in the back and a neighbourhood pool on their cul-de-sac was the largest home they’d ever owned.

“Nicer cars, a nicer house — none of it felt fulfilling,” says Amber. “I kept dreaming of being able to travel with our kids and experience adventures that really stretched us beyond our comfort zone.

“We knew that we’d need the equity from our house in order to afford a type of sailboat that could fit six people comfortably,” says Amber.

They put their home on the market and sold it in three weeks.

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Transitioning from a home to boat living

The next step — aside from sending Brandon to sailing school — was to buy a boat.

“Boats are like houses in the sense that you can find a boat that matches your budget — from trailer park style to super yacht,” says Brandon. “For us, since we knew we were using our equity in our home to purchase a depreciating asset, we wanted to go for a used boat, since most of the depreciation happens in the first five years.”

However, they also knew they’d need a boat that was big enough to comfortably “house” a family of six.

Ultimately they chose a Lagoon 450, which is a four-cabin model, with each cabin having its own bathroom and shower.

“For our family of six, this felt like a size that we could manage for sailing but also for living spaces for the family,” says Brandon.

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“Since the older kids all have their own cabins, they get to have their privacy and they can treat it like their room, so they brought the things that felt most special with them,” says Amber. “Brandon and I also have our own cabin, and thankfully, we all have locking doors.”

Along with the four cabins, they have a main “saloon” area that includes the galley (kitchen), navigation desk, and their “living room” — which houses an L-shaped couch. There is also a cockpit area that holds a dining table and additional seating. The boat’s flybridge (an elevated deck and observation point) is on the upper deck and includes a lounge pad plus seating for eight people.

Making the financials work for a family of six at sea

Figuring out how to make their new lifestyle work took financial planning, especially since Brandon and Amber quit their jobs. However, by being entrepreneurial and sustainable, they’re coming out ahead.

To begin with, the Morses used the money from their home sale to pay cash for their catamaran, which eliminated a mortgage payment, property taxes, and utility bills.

Now their only “utility bill” is diesel for the boat engines and generator, but they can go months without having to “fill up.” Brandon also installed a massive solar charging system that charges a large battery bank, which allows the family to live off grid.

“We don’t go into marinas, and we rarely have to run our generator,” says Amber. “We do everything with free solar power — from cooking, to making water with our saltwater desalination water maker, to running our water heater.”

For money, in addition to living off their savings for a while, they also rent out a duplex they own.

More recently, they’ve started getting content creation work from a few companies and brands (thanks to their large Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube followings), and they have an Amazon page for “essential items for boat life” from which they earn a little commission.

“Cooking in a small galley has its challenges, but I also didn’t realise how much I would enjoy using whatever resources we have on hand as a creative outlet,” says Amber. “I even took up making sourdough bread for the first time, and actually before boat life, I had never made bread in my entire life.”

Amber says there is also something truly magical — almost like a “reclaiming” — that has happened with having the time to make homemade food and then sit around their back table eating it together as a family.

“This is quite the contrast to the busy life we used to live on land, eating granola bars in the car, going from one activity to the next,” she adds.

High highs and low lows when it’s all hands on deck

While their lives are definitely picturesque, the Morses say that, just like life on land, they have good days and bad days on the boat.

“Something that we learned very quickly is that all the romantic moments are earned,” says Amber. “It’s hard work maintaining and managing a self-sustaining, floating city.”

All the boat’s operating systems are rather complex, and Brandon has to oversee two large diesel engines and a generator.

“When a system isn’t working correctly, it can completely put a damper on our living situation,” says Brandon.

Plus, there are weather issues with which to contend.

“Our lives are completely dictated by it,” says Brandon. “We’ve now weathered several tropical storms and had to outrun hurricanes.”

But on the flip side, their days are filled with wonder and new experiences. Mornings usually begin with a snorkel, and the kids — now aged 19, 14 (the twins), and 8 — have made friends from all over the world.

“Even though the ocean was so foreign to us, it’s provided us with some of the most magical moments I could ever fathom as a family,” says Amber.

“When there’s no land in sight and you have a pod of dolphins playfully swimming at your bow — how can that be topped? The ocean has truly changed us, and living on a boat has changed us.

“When you cast the dock lines, you’re leaving all the conveniences of land and trading them for potentially the hardest thing you will ever do.

“But the coolest thing — after four years, 15,000 nautical miles, and 21 different countries — our kids have grown so much and built character in ways they never would have if we’d just stayed in our little cul-de-sac.”

The post We gave up our house to live on a sailboat in the Caribbean appeared first on realestate.com.au.

Rainy Hake Austin, president of The Agency, joined Tracey Velt on this week’s episode of the RealTrending podcast to discuss the evolving landscape of real estate leadership and operations.

The Agency, which is ranked No. 13 by sales volume and is the fourth-largest largest privately held independent brokerage in the country, has expanded to nearly 100 offices nationwide over the past five years, according to the 2025 RealTrends Verified Top Brokerage rankings.

In the interview, Hake Austin emphasizes the importance of ethical leadership and a growing industry shift away from a purely transactional mindset. She also outlines how The Agency is leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance internal processes.

This conversation excerpt has been edited for length and clarity.

Velt: You do have a boutique feel to your brand. How do you scale that as you grow bigger?

Hake Austin: It’s a great question. It’s probably the No. 1 thing that keeps me up at night when I think about our growth and our expansion. We’ve had great success there. The team focuses a lot on processes and systems as we do that.

So what I mean by that is if we’re bringing on a global partner, for instance, it’s a courting period. I mean, we spend maybe six months interviewing them, them interviewing us, making sure it’s the right fit. I personally meet with every single global partner who joins before.

She explained that maintaining The Agency’s culture requires a highly intentional approach that’s focused on processes, systems and people. She also pointed to regular support from centralized teams.

Hake Austin: We have an ops team that literally meets with all of our offices once a month. Our centralized marketing team trains local marketing staff. Even our global partners are mentored monthly. We coach and mentor them to make sure that they know the newest strategy and trends.

A Kew mansion with a heritage facade and a hidden skate ramp has hit the market with a $10.5m-$11.5m price guide.

The grand Victorian home at 1-3 Sackville St was designed in the late 1800s by prominent architect John Beswicke, whose work helped shape much of Melbourne’s early suburban character.

Beswicke was responsible for more than 300 buildings across Victoria, including the Hawthorn, Brighton and Essendon town halls, and numerous homes throughout Kew and Hawthorn during the boom era of the 1880s.

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This property retains key features from that period — wide hallways, ceiling roses, arched verandas, and a striking stained glass window in the stairwell.

But, Nelson Alexander Kew agent Laurence Murphy said it’s the basement that tends to catch buyers off guard.

“They were the ones who really took on the restoration and brought the property to its current state,” Mr Murphy said.

“Their goal was to honour the home’s origins as a grand Victorian-era mansion, while giving it a unique lifestyle edge.

Mr Murphy said the basement wasn’t part of the original structure – it was added by the previous owners.

The lower level boasts a home gym, workshop, wine cellar and six-car garage — along with a fully built-in indoor skate ramp.

The home comes with fully endorsed plans by heritage architect Peter Barton to complete the restoration, including adding a tennis court and landscaped gardens.

The Nelson Alexander Kew agent Laurence Murphy said from the upper level, the home also enjoys uninterrupted views of Melbourne’s skyline.

“From this particular pocket of Sackville Street, that view is genuinely rare,” Mr Murphy said.

“You’re looking out over rooftops and tree canopies – nothing in front of you is likely to be built up.”

While the current seller hasn’t undertaken any changes since purchasing the home in 2023 for $10.58m, interest has come from both local families and international buyers.

“So far, it’s been mostly families – local ones, many of whom have admired the home or the location for years,” Mr Murphy said.

“We’ve also had interest from overseas buyers, particularly those with experience restoring and living in heritage homes.”

Mr Murphy said the grandness of the oversized rooms and the beautifully preserved period features at the front of the house was what made the prestigious estate stand out.

“To get a block of this size in Sackville Ward is exceptionally rare,” he said.

The home is being sold by Nelson Alexander in conjunction with Marshall White.

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A new survey has revealed that 60 per cent of Aussie borrowers are still experiencing financial strain despite recent interest rate cuts.

Finder surveyed 1027 Aussies, of which 297 were mortgage holders, with three in five respondents still struggling to make ends meet, even after the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) cut the official cash rate to 3.85 percentage points at its most recent meeting, the first time it has been below 4 percentage points since May 2023.

But that is still not enough for some borrowers, with Finder revealing that based on their findings, almost two million mortgage holders were still feeling the financial heat.

“Taking into account yesterday’s rate cut, half of borrowers (50%) would still need two or more interest rate cuts to comfortably afford their mortgage, while 17 per cent – equivalent to 561,000 mortgage holders – would need five or more (cuts),” the survey found.

“Only one in three (32%) said they would be completely fine with their rate even before the cut.

“A further eight per cent said they only needed one cut to be comfortable, and they just got it.”

It was further revealed that women (65%) were more likely than men (54%) to need a drop in their interest rate to comfortably afford their mortgage.

Rebecca Pike, money expert at Finder, said millions of Australians were counting on multiple rate cuts to ease the pressure.

“We are moving in the right direction, but millions of mortgage holders will lose grip on their loan if interest rates don’t keep steadily falling,” Pike said.

“Without significant rate cuts from the RBA, many will face serious financial strain by the new year.”

Pike said many borrowers had drained emergency savings topping up their home loan and coping with the rising cost of living.

“Households are desperate for home loan relief in the form of multiple rate drops,” she said.

“If your provider is not competitive, now is the time to consider refinancing.

“We’re beginning to see lower fixed rates emerge as variable rates fall and lenders ramp up competition for new business.”

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But while the rate cut will be welcomed by mortgage holders, it will likely be another cruel blow for those still trying to get a foot on the property ladder.

SQM Research managing director Louis Christopher said the rate cut would send auction clearance rates soaring, predicting property prices to rise 10 per cent by the end of the calendar year.

Mr Christopher said first-home buyers needed to get in before the back end of 2025.

“It is very likely housing prices will rise from here and continue into 2026,” Mr Christopher said.

“From today’s rate cut and the one in March, first home buyers are in a better buying position compared to six months ago.

“Their purchasing and borrowing power has increased. However, if I am right about price rises, they will need to move quickly, otherwise they will be back to square one on affordability.”

Barefoot investor Scott Pape said that while the rate cut would help those trying to pay off their mortgage, it would also see more of the “wrong people” get into the housing market.

“If I was a young person right now I would be pretty pissed off,” Mr Pape told news.com.au

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