Eye On Housing
Rates on New Home Loans Rise, Amount Declines
Earlier today, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) reported a slight (4 basis point) decline in mortgage interest rates for the month of June. However, the decline was driven entirely by loans on existing homes. The average interest rate on conventional mortgages used to purchase newly built homes moved in the opposite direction, and the increase was fairly strong. The contract… Read More ›
Recent Posts
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Apartment Buildings Benefit from Sustainability (Newness & Affordability Too)
Using a sample of Fannie Mae loans, a recent academic study finds evidence that owners of apartment buildings with certain sustainability features are less likely to default on their mortgages. The article produces a number of other results that also may be of interest. The article was authored by Gary Pivo, of the University of Arizona, and published in the… Read More ›
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GDP and FOMC – How Do You Spell Relief?
An almost audible sigh of relief is conveyed in the statement that followed the July meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) as the committee upgraded its assessment of the economy and the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) released estimates of economic activity for the April to June quarter, including 4.0% growth in GDP. The BEA reported that real… Read More ›
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House Prices Have Room to Grow, For Real
House price growth has been slowing in recent months, but still remains well above the rate of general inflation. For instance, annual growth in the S&P/Case-Shiller 20-City Composite home price index eased for the sixth consecutive month in May to 9.3% while the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s (FHFA) Purchase-Only house price index slowed to a 5.6% increase. Both these measures were… Read More ›
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Homeownership Rate Continues to Decline
The seasonally adjusted national homeownership rate fell to 64.8% during the second quarter of 2014. This marks a drop of 4.6 percentage points since the peak rate of 69.4% during the second quarter of 2004, according to the Census Bureau’s quarterly survey. The homeownership rate declined by 0.3 percentage points year-over-year. The current rate is also below the 20-year historical… Read More ›
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Pending Sales Skip a Beat
Pending home sales fell 1.1% in June, breaking a three month streak of improvement after a dismal winter. The Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI), a forward-looking indicator based on signed contracts reported by the National Association of Realtors (NAR), decreased 1.1% in June to 102.7 from a downwardly revised May level of 103.8. The June reading was down 7.3% on… Read More ›
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New Home Sales: Cash Purchases on the Rise
The share of new single-family home sales purchased with cash rose during the second quarter of 2014, reaching 8.4% of sales. The onset of the housing crisis in 2007 led to a decline in the share of new home sales due to conventional mortgage financing and increases in the shares due to mortgages backed by the FHA and the Department of Veteran’s… Read More ›
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Remodelers’ Confidence Recovers in the Second Quarter
NAHB’s Remodeling Market Index (RMI) rose three points to 56 in the second quarter of 2014; essentially reclaiming the territory it had lost during what was likely a weather-related dip in the fist three months of the year.The RMI is based on a quarterly survey of NAHB remodelers, and is an average of separate indices for remodelers’ ratings of current… Read More ›
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New Home Sales in June – Disappointing But Not A Disaster
The Census Bureau released figures for new home sales in June. Sales of new single family houses were at a seasonally adjusted annual pace of 406 thousand, down from a downwardly revised pace of 442 thousand in May. The June sales pace was disappointing but not a disaster. The May pace, even after revision, was a surprise on the high… Read More ›
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Eye on the Economy: Housing Starts Pause and Existing Sales Rise
Existing home sales posted a third monthly increase in June, passing a 5 million annualized sales pace for the first time since October of 2013. The recent gains reverse the negative trend that had set in after an increase in mortgage interest rates in the fall followed by an unusually long winter in some parts of the country. However, gains… Read More ›