Weekly Roundup | Bitcoin, Crypto, & Blockchain

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Let’s make your week a little easier. The Empire Weekly Roundup newsletter brings you real estate tips, market know-how, and CE updates—all in one quick email.

🗣️ Quote of the Week

“It's hard to predict the future, but some people think that Bitcoin could do to finance what the Internet did to communications."

― Alex Biryukov (Cryptographer, Professor)

🚀 Featured Article

Bitcoin, Crypto, & Blockchain in Real Estate

The world is buzzing about Bitcoin, cryptocurrency, and blockchain. As an agent, you might be wondering if these technologies will really impact your day-to-day real estate business. The truth is, while you’re probably not closing deals in Bitcoin today, changes are on the horizon. A few years ago, concepts like online listings or e-signatures seemed novel. Now they’re standard. Similarly, blockchain and crypto are gradually making their way into real estate. In this article, we’ll break down what these terms mean, how they’re being used in real estate right now, and what they could mean for your future business.

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👀 Explore This Deal!

Avoid burnout and go exploring to wrap up the summer! Take 20% off all real estate continuing education courses at Empire Learning this week. Use code EXPLORE at checkout and experience the savings while earning those credit hours.

🏕️ Browse CE Courses

Offer valid through August 17. Use promo code EXPLORE at checkout.

🏆 Trending on Empire Learning

🧠 AI Listing Copy vs Human Voice

Ever read a home listing that felt like a robot wrote it? You’re not alone. Buyers can often tell when a description sounds canned or “too generic,” and it can make them trust the listing (and agent) a little less. Great real estate copy is about facts and feelings. A human touch can highlight the lifestyle and emotions of a home in ways an algorithm often misses. AI can be a helpful tool for speed, but if it strips away authenticity or gets details wrong, it may do more harm than good.

• It’s obvious when it’s all “AI-speak." A bland, fill-in-the-blank listing description can stick out like a sore thumb. Buyers (and sellers) will “see right through” an inauthentic, bot-like description, which can hurt your credibility as a professional.
• Emotions vs. features. Human-written copy tends to sell a story or a lifestyle, not just list the features. While an AI might rattle off bedroom counts and appliances, a person can paint a picture, helping buyers imagine “living in the home, not just walking through it”. This emotional connection can make a listing far more compelling.
• Use AI as a helper, not a crutch. Sure, tools like ChatGPT can crank out a quick draft (maybe 90% of the work), but they don’t know your listing like you do. Often, the AI will repeat itself or miss the real selling point of the property. It’s up to you to guide it with the right input and then tweak the output. Highlight the custom kitchen or cozy backyard that an algorithm might overlook.
• Double-check for accuracy and tone. AI isn’t perfect. It might accidentally add features that aren’t there or use flowery language that feels off. Always review and edit the description to make sure it’s factually correct and sounds like you (and not a cheesy template). A polished, accurate description in a warm tone builds trust with buyers.
• Stand out with personality. In a sea of listings, a bit of genuine voice helps yours shine. Instead of the same old phrases (“charming, must-see, one-of-a-kind”), a human touch lets your unique branding and knowledge come through. When buyers feel there’s a real person behind the words, they’re more likely to engage, and ultimately, to feel comfortable making an offer.

🧮 Buydowns vs Price Cuts

When it comes to sweetening a deal, should a seller drop the price or help buy down the buyer’s interest rate? Lately, many agents are finding that a “2-1 buydown” (a seller-paid temporary rate reduction) can beat a $10k price reduction for attracting buyers. A 2-1 buydown means the buyer’s rate is 2% lower in the first year and 1% lower in the second year, giving immediate relief on monthly payments. The key is that for a relatively small upfront cost to the seller, the buyer’s monthly payment is slashed much more than it would be with a simple price cut. It’s a bit of mortgage math that can be a win-win... the buyer saves money when it counts most, and the seller potentially secures a deal without permanently slashing the asking price.

• What’s a 2-1 buydown? It’s an agreement where the seller prepays some interest so the buyer’s mortgage rate is reduced for the first two years (2% off in year one, 1% off in year two). For example, if the loan is at 6.5%, the buyer only pays 4.5% the first year and 5.5% the second. Importantly, the seller covers this cost at closing as a concession, rather than dropping the sale price.
• Monthly payment boost. A temporary rate reduction can shrink a buyer’s monthly payment by hundreds of dollars in those early years. For instance, one scenario showed that about a $9,000 seller credit saved the buyer roughly $500 per month in year one and $250 per month in year two. In comparison, simply cutting the price by $10,000 might only save a buyer on the order of ~$100 or less per month on their mortgage (the exact number varies, but one estimate is ~$120 at certain rates). The buydown clearly delivers more short-term budget relief for the buyer.
• Help for hesitant buyers. Lower initial payments can help buyers qualify for a loan or just feel more comfortable saying “yes” to the house. In today’s high-rate environment, many buyers are payment-sensitive or stretched thin. Offering a 2-1 buydown is like giving them a financial cushion for the first two years, which might be the extra push they need to move forward.
• Easy kitchen-table math. When explaining this to clients, break out a simple comparison. “If I knock $10,000 off the price, your monthly payment might drop only around fifty bucks or so. But if we use that money to buy down your rate, you could save a few hundred dollars each month upfront.”

🧰 Pre-Inspection Trend

There’s a growing trend in real estate... sellers are ordering home inspections before listing their homes. Why? Deals have been falling through more often due to surprise issues found during the buyer’s inspection. Getting ahead of it allows sellers to fix problems or disclose them upfront, which speeds up the offer process and shrinks the chances of last-minute renegotiations. Keep in mind, if an inspection does uncover issues, you and your agent are legally obligated to disclose those to buyers. But that honesty can actually be turned to your advantage with the right framing. A pre-listing inspection essentially gives the seller more control over the narrative and condition of the sale.

• Fix issues before they derail a deal. By doing a pre-listing inspection, sellers can identify and address repairs before the For Sale sign goes up. This means no nasty surprises popping up during escrow, which is exactly what often makes skittish buyers back out.
• Clarity builds trust. Sharing an inspection report (or a summary of it) with potential buyers shows that you have nothing to hide. One agent put it simply... “Disclosure is confidence.” Buyers feel more comfortable when you’re upfront about the home’s condition. In fact, many will view a pre-inspection as a sign of good faith. It gives them a baseline to go on, and some might even waive or shorten their own inspection because they feel reassured by yours.
• Frame it as a selling point. Market your home as “pre-inspected” and spin that into a positive. Some companies provide yard signs that say “This home has been pre-inspected”, almost like a stamp of approval=. It’s comparable to selling a certified pre-owned car.
• No surprises = smoother negotiations. When sellers proactively disclose defects, buyers can factor those into their offer from the start. That means fewer renegotiation requests down the line. For example, if the inspection finds an aging water heater, you can decide whether to replace it or price the home accordingly. Either way, the buyer won’t be blindsided by it later.
• Share the highlights (but not every minor detail). You don’t necessarily need to hand over a 100-page technical report to every interested buyer. Usually, the inspection summary outlining the major findings is enough to keep things above board. This covers the important “need-to-know” items without overwhelming or spooking buyers with trivial fixes. The goal is to inform buyers, not alarm them.
• Still allow buyer due diligence. Encourage buyers to do their own inspection if they want (most will, for peace of mind). The pre-listing inspection isn’t a substitute, but a head start. If you’ve already fixed the big issues or at least disclosed them, the buyer’s inspection should simply confirm what everyone already expects.

🎯 Quick CE Tip of the Week

🎤 “Pitch Practice in Disguise” Use that tricky CE topic (like tax strategy or ADA compliance) as material for a client-friendly elevator speech. If you can explain it without their eyes glazing over, you’ve turned a course requirement into a potential client presentation advantage.

→ Start Today! (And Start Working on Your Elevator Pitch)

📈 Market Highlight: The Great Wait-and-See

🔥 Did You Know? Not much has changed since last week. If you missed last week's market highlight to kick off August, we're keeping it in this week's newsletter. If you already skimmed it last week, you're good to go! As we kick off August, the housing market is showing signs of settling into a more balanced groove. Residential agents across the country are seeing a shift... More homes are available for sale than we've seen in recent years, but buyers remain cautious. Let's dive into the key trends happening nationally with inventory, buyer and seller behavior, mortgage rates, and prices, and what they mean for you and your clients in this evolving "normal."

→ View Full Market Highlight

💡 Feedback Welcome!

We'd love your feedback. The lifeblood of any good business is figuring out what their customers truly care about — the best agents also learn this about their clients.

If you have any thoughts, ranging from what topic should be discussed in next week's newsletter to more in-depth ideas on how the CE experience can be the best it can be, please reach out via the email link below — we're truly all ears.

Happy Learning,

— The Empire Learning Team
www.empirelearning.com