Key Details:
- Steve Harney, Founder of Keeping Current Matters (KCM), passed away on Sunday, March 3rd, 2024, at age 68. KCM issued a statement in tribute.
- In lieu of flowers, his family would prefer donations to Habitat for Humanity. Reflecting Harney’s lifelong dedication to helping more Americans become homeowners.
Respected and revered as the “oracle of real estate,” Steve Harney, founder of Keeping Current Matters, passed away suddenly on March 3rd at the age of 68.
As we mourn the loss of Steve, we hold tight to the incredible impact he had on agents, our industry, and the fact that his legacy will live on at Keeping Current Matters. Steve’s vision, his principles and his passion for people will always be our compass. Our team is committed to staying true to his mission of educating agents and championing the dream of homeownership.
Trailblazer, advocate, and educator
Steve Harney’s real estate career began in 1983 in Suffolk County, New York, where he became a top-producing real estate agent. In 1991, he became manager of the largest office for Prudential Long Island Realty, building a reputation as a leading educator as he trained agents throughout the East Coast markets.
Four years later, Harney founded his own real estate brokerage, National Homefinders, using market insights to grow the business to 500 agents before selling in 2005.
In 2007, he founded Keeping Current Matters to help real estate professionals understand what was happening in the months leading up to the Great Financial Crisis (GFC) of 2008.
From KCM’s statement:
“Steve’s vision was to equip as many agents as possible with the information, analysis, and data they needed to become not just real estate professionals, but trusted advisors.”
Harney sold KCM in 2016 to his son and daughter-in-law but remained active as a founder. He became a sought-after speaker at real estate events across the U.S., including hundreds of KCM events, the annual National Association of Realtors® (NAR) conference, and events for other major service providers to the real estate industry.
Quoted in dozens of major news publications, Harney appeared on Fox Business News at the height of the Great Financial Crisis.
Harney was also known for his philanthropy, turning National Homefinders into one of the largest supporters and volunteer groups for Habitat for Humanity. Through that alliance, he helped several dozen families become homeowners.
After Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, Harney and his wife Kathy volunteered for three weeks with the American Red Cross in Houston to help displaced survivors.
In Loving Memory of an Industry Legend
BAM co-founder Byron Lazine shared a tribute to Harney on Twitter/X:
Our ecosystem today suffers a void that will never be filled by any one person. Steve instilled an incalculable amount of education and insight in to all of us. Rest peacefully, the one and only Oracle of real estate @SteveHarney @KCMcrew https://t.co/6BbEC8ZwxF
— Byron Lazine (@ByronLazine) March 8, 2024
Steve Harney’s Twitter/X bio is a quote from Ziad K. Abdelnour:
“Trust is earned, respect is given. and loyalty is demonstrated. Betrayal of any one of those is to lose all three.”
One of his final Twitter posts (posted March 2nd) shares his concern about homebuyers and homeowners postponing their plans due to fears of falling home prices—and announcing a free webinar he was planning to host the following Monday to address the misconception and help Americans make informed decisions. Because he couldn’t stand idly by when people were misled by false doomsday prophets, especially when it could cost them dearly in the long term.
People ask me why I am so obsessed with showing that housing values in this country are stable.
The reason? This graph shows that…right now…22% of Americans still believe home values will depreciate over the next 12 months. This is ~double the pre-pandemic percentage.
That… https://t.co/iI92EJe3k3 pic.twitter.com/nXkm1DtRS3
— Steve Harney (@SteveHarney) March 3, 2024
Mike Simonsen, president of Altos Research, also shared the following:
The thing I found so admirable about Steve was that even as a preeminent analyst, educator and communicator about the real estate market, he was also an unapologetic cheerleader for the industry. He believed it was truly good for Americans to own their homes. He was on a mission to help make that happen. Steve was fighting the good fight every day.
For those wanting to pay tribute to Harney, his family is requesting donations to Habitat for Humanity (in lieu of flowers), furthering Harney’s lifelong dedication to making homeownership accessible and affordable for as many as possible.
