Trust is defined as “the assured reliance on the character, ability, strength, or truth of someone or something.” We strive to trust others in our personal lives every day, trusting a partner, friend, or family member. We trust them to tell us the truth even when it hurts. We trust them to communicate and be compassionate, but also truthful and to stick to what they believe in.

The same goes for employee business relationships and customer business relationships, but trust is even more essential in everyday business operations and simultaneously difficult to build and even harder to repair if broken.

Why is this so?

This is a complex question to answer, and it is difficult to build or rebuild this trust with an Anticipatory mindset. As evidenced by David Horsager in a recent episode of my Opportunity Hour: Conversations with the Masters, institutional trust is down, whether that institution be a company you own, one you work for, the government, or another professional entity.

In his book, “Trusted Leader: 8 Pillars That Drive Results,” David shares eight key qualities that successful companies possess to cultivate trust among employees and customers. During our interview, I examined these pillars with David and discovered their power in cultivating an Anticipatory Mindset for building and, more importantly, rebuilding trust with both customers and employees.

The 8 Pillars of Trust and Being an Anticipatory Leader

1. Clarity

Simplicity and exactness are vital keys to developing institutional trust. David has found that people do not trust leaders who are overly complex or, conversely, too vague either. If a leader’s vision or the steps to achieve such vision is not communicated clearly to their audience, a sense of mistrust begins to develop.

To connect this to cultivating an Anticipatory mindset as a leader of an institution, having a lack of clarity around your goals translates to a lack of understanding Hard Trends. Hard Trends are those that will absolutely come to fruition, and with the capability of defining what a Hard Trend is both in your industry and in the outside world, you should be able to bring your team and your customers a clear picture of your intentions.

2. Compassion

Compassion does not mean that the organization or leader was compassionate toward us personally. It means that they were compassionate toward the industry and organization as a whole, fostering a sense of unity in teamwork. David and I discussed how we as humans look toward those that we feel have a higher purpose as it demonstrates both a trust in stability and a trust in guidance.

Whether it is a goal for an organization we believe in or a product that we believe in, we trust those that care beyond themselves. In regard to an Anticipatory mindset, this pillar aligns quite well with my thoughts about placing significance over success as a leader. Concrete trust is cemented when you aim to sculpt a significant legacy in the world.

3. Character

The pillar of character from David Horsager means that we trust those who do what is right over what is easy. The easy route is essentially taking the simple way out regardless of the problems it may have left, whereas a trustworthy character comes from putting in the legwork to right the wrongs, no matter how large or small.

Here is a large one, indeed: David and I discussed the BP oil spill of 2010 in this episode. Following an explosion of an oil rig, oil spilled into the ocean and ultimately caused a negative ripple effect that altered the area’s aquatic ecosystem. Yes, BP apologized, but they did not shirk from the issue, launching excursions and cleanup initiatives to remedy the mistake. Rebuilding trust with character is a classic case of leveraging a Soft Trend you can influence, such as preventing the ultimate decimation of an ecosystem.

4. Competency

Having character does not mean your business or organization is competent in something. If you are trying to sell me on an electric motorcycle your company has built when your cornerstone has always been gas motorcycles, I will not immediately trust that you are competent enough to produce a safe and efficient electric motorcycle.

However, character and competency do go hand in hand. As a way to prove you are competent in your industry overall, having the character to follow through with any shortcomings in an industry your organization appears to be an expert in, or perhaps something you are newly delving into, helps maintain trust. Consider this to be an exercise in exponential thinking from my Anticipatory Leader System — seeing all possibilities available to have a mastery of your industry.

5. Commitment

David outlines to us that both employees and customers trust those that have a solid commitment to their industry. If you are constantly choosing new directions, many will see it as a shaky foundation or lack of leadership, with a mindset constantly in flux or that you and your organization do not have your eye on the prize.

Again, if you are able to identify a Hard Trend, it is best to stay committed to it and leverage it to anticipate where it is heading. This is how you evolve your business or organization in a trustworthy way — with Hard Trend future certainties. The key here is to be able to differentiate between these and Soft Trend future possibilities.

6. Connection

No business can be successful without collaboration and finding successful ways to combine the two jobs into a cohesive whole. Additionally, humans are social creatures. Whether it is work, play, or for personal reasons, we rely heavily on social connections and interactions when looking to trust individuals or organizations.

As such, the pillar of connection is a foundation of institutional trust, internally and externally as well. As an employee, you likely do not trust a team that does not seem connected just as you likely do not trust eating at a restaurant that in no way connects to their customers through marketing or otherwise. Be a leading force that can be counted upon by again thinking exponentially about how you can connect to those who you rely on as an organization.

7. Contribution

You can be a master of all the aforementioned 8 Pillars of Trust, but how do any of those quantify into something substantial if there is no contribution to the industry? This is where the rubber meets the road and you deliver on your promises of excellence to customers and employees alike.

Internally, everyone’s role contributes to the success of your business or organization, but externally, what you contribute to the industry and, more importantly, the world determines if the world will trust you. As David states, you can have character, commitment, connection, and many other pillars mastered, but if there is no tactile contribution, there is nothing quantifiable to trust.

8. Consistency

Trustworthiness is strengthened by consistency in all ways. Similar to staying committed to a goal, trust is broken when consistency at a business or organization wavers. The message given off to those internal at your business or the customers you serve is that you will be here in the future, which translates to strength of trust in the moment.

My Hard Trend Methodology lays out an integral roadmap for businesses and organizations to chart their consistency with customers and employees, meaning customers will stick with you knowing you can pre-solve the disruptive problems on the horizon using your products or services and employees rest easy knowing your organization is one they can rely on for their career.

If you are looking for more insights in how to build or rebuild trust with customers and employees, I encourage you to read David Horsager’s book Trusted Leader: 8 Pillars That Drive Results and, likewise, explore my Anticipatory Leader System to see how these great insights align with my Hard Trend Methodology, teachings in exponential thinking, and more.

U.S. home prices are down 2.7%, the smallest decline in over a month, and prices are dropping in fewer metros

The median U.S. home-sale price fell 2.7% during the four weeks ending May 14, the smallest decline in over a month. That’s according to a new report from Redfin (redfin.com), the technology-powered real estate brokerage.

Monthly mortgage payments hit a record high due to still-high prices and elevated mortgage rates. On a local level, home prices are declining in 28 of the 50 most populous U.S. metros, down from a high of 32 metros at the end of April.

That’s a reflection of a mismatch between demand and supply propping up prices. Pending home sales are down 15% from a year earlier, but that’s much smaller than the 24% decline in new listings.

Today’s elevated mortgage rates continue to discourage homeowners from selling; nearly all of them have a mortgage rate below 6%, while this week’s average 30-year rate was 6.39%. The dearth of new listings has drained inventory, with the total number of homes for sale dropping over the past two months, going against typical seasonal trends.

The share of homes selling that are doing so within two weeks (48%) is also bucking seasonal trends, illustrating urgency from buyers who don’t have much to choose from. That share has steadily increased over the last two months, while it typically falls this time of year.

“High mortgage rates continue to dictate the housing market. Although a lot of homebuyers have acclimated to rates in the 6% range and many are finding ways to lower their monthly payments, like using a 2-1 buydown, high rates are handcuffing potential sellers,” said Redfin Deputy Chief Economist Taylor Marr. “It’s hard to imagine a flood of new listings until rates come down at least into the 5s. For those who are selling now, the silver lining of giving up a low rate is that hardly anyone else is doing the same thing. That means buyers, who are hungry for new listings, will bite—and they don’t have much power to negotiate the price down.”

Newly built homes could help alleviate the inventory shortage even if rates remain elevated, and there are signs more may be coming. U.S. homebuilder confidence rose for the fifth straight month in May, hitting its highest level in nearly a year, and permits for single-family homes rose to a seven-month high in April.

Housing-market trends are playing out differently in different parts of the country, but agents in most metros are reporting that demand is outpacing supply. In Boise, ID, which had one of the hottest markets in the country during the pandemic, Redfin Premier agent Shauna Pendleton says today’s buyers are having a hard time finding homes because homeowners are sitting on 3% mortgage rates and aren’t moving unless they’re leaving the state.

“I’m practically begging potential sellers to list, especially those in the more affordable price point because those are the homes buyers are hungry for,” Pendleton said. “Every listing I’ve had since January priced at under $400,000 has had multiple offers within a few days on the market. I listed a home at the end of April at $399,900 and we ended up with four offers by the fourth day; it ended up going for $10,000 over list price. I even listed one at $650,000 that got multiple offers and went pending in under 48 hours.”

In Fort Lauderdale, FL, home prices are up 9% year over year, more than anywhere else in the U.S. except Milwaukee. Redfin team manager Andrea Duke said Fort Lauderdale prices are holding up well because South Florida is a popular destination. “There’s almost always demand for this area because people move here for the weather, and a lot of them pay in cash,” Duke said. “If a home is priced well and it’s in great shape, the seller will get multiple offers. But the market isn’t quite as hot as it was last year; most buyers are still including contingencies in their offers.”

Leading indicators of homebuying activity:

• For the week ending May 18, the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 6.39%, up slightly from 6.35% the week before and back to the same level as two weeks before. The daily average was 6.7% on May 17.
• Mortgage-purchase applications during the week ending May 12 decreased 5% from a week earlier, seasonally adjusted. Purchase applications were down 26% from a year earlier.
• The seasonally adjusted Redfin Homebuyer Demand Index—a measure of requests for home tours and other homebuying services from Redfin agents—was down 2% from a week earlier during the week ending May 14, though the decline was largely due to Mother’s Day falling on this past Sunday. It was down 3% from a year earlier.
• Google searches for “homes for sale” were little changed from a month earlier during the week ending May 13, and down about 16% from a year earlier.
• Touring activity as of May 13 was up 20% from the start of the year, compared with an 8% increase at the same time last year, according to home tour technology company ShowingTime.

Key housing market takeaways for 400+ U.S. metro areas:

Unless otherwise noted, this data covers the four-week period ending May 14. Redfin’s weekly housing market data goes back through 2015. For bullets that include metro-level breakdowns, Redfin analyzed the 50 most populous U.S. metros. Select metros may be excluded from time to time to ensure data accuracy.

• The median home sale price was $371,875, down 2.7% from a year earlier, the smallest decline in a month. Prices are up about 7% from the start of the year, a typical seasonal increase.
• Home-sale prices declined in 28 metros, with the biggest drops in Austin, TX (-17.8% YoY), Oakland, CA (-16.3%), San Francisco (-13.1%), Las Vegas (-11.4%) and San Jose, CA (-9.6%). Those are the biggest declines since at least 2015 for Oakland and Las Vegas.
• Sale prices increased most in Milwaukee (9.2%), Fort Lauderdale, FL (9%), New Brunswick, NJ (6.4%), Indianapolis (4.9%) and Newark, NJ (4.4%).
• The median asking price of newly listed homes was $398,429, down 0.3% from a year earlier. Although it’s small, that’s the first time asking prices have posted an annual decline since May 2020.
• The monthly mortgage payment on the median-asking-price home hit a record high of $2,573 at a 6.39% mortgage rate, the current weekly average. That’s up 9.5% ($224) from a year earlier.
• Pending home sales were down 14.6% year over year, the smallest decline in two months. That doesn’t necessarily mean pending sales are improving; instead, it reflects buyers backing off last spring as mortgage rates rose.
• Pending home sales fell in all metros Redfin analyzed. They declined most in Seattle (-33.4%), San Diego (-31.2%), Portland, OR (-28.9%), Sacramento, CA (-27.9%), and Milwaukee, WI (-27.3%).
• New listings of homes for sale fell 24.3% year over year, the second-biggest decline since May 2020 (the biggest was during the four weeks ending April 9, which included the Easter holiday).
• New listings declined in all metros Redfin analyzed. They fell most in Seattle (-42.9% YoY), San Diego (-41.2%), Oakland, CA (-41.1%), Las Vegas (-40.8%) and Anaheim, CA (-39.3%).
• Active listings (the number of homes listed for sale at any point during the period) were up 1.8% from a year earlier, the smallest increase since last June. Active listings fell slightly (-0.4%) from a month earlier; typically, they post month-over-month increases at this time of year.
• Months of supply—a measure of the balance between supply and demand, calculated by the number of months it would take for the current inventory to sell at the current sales pace—was 2.7 months, up from 2 months a year earlier. Four to five months of supply is considered balanced, with a lower number indicating seller’s market conditions.
• 48.4% of homes that went under contract had an accepted offer within the first two weeks on the market, down just slightly from 50% a year earlier and up from 46% a month earlier. Typically, we see month-over-month declines at this time of year; in all but two of the last eight years, this metric peaked in March.
• Homes that sold were on the market for a median of 31 days, the shortest span since September. That’s up from a record low of 18 days a year earlier.
• 32.9% of homes sold above their final list price. That’s the highest share since September but is down from 54% a year earlier.
• On average, 5.1% of homes for sale each week had a price drop, up from 3.4% a year earlier.
• The average sale-to-list price ratio, which measures how close homes are selling to their final asking prices, was 99.5%. That’s the highest level since September but is down from 102.6% a year earlier.

To view the full report, including charts, please visit: https://www.redfin.com/news/housing-market-update-fewer-metros-home-price-declines-low-inventory