Eye On Housing
Author Archives
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Residential Construction Industry Contributes to Monthly Job Growth
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported the Employment Situation for May 2018. Jobs increased by 223,000 and the unemployment rate edged down to 3.8% in May. The growth rate of average hourly earnings accelerated slightly to 2.7%, but growth has largely been flat since 2016. The release also indicates that the number of construction jobs rose by 25,000 in… Read More ›
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Home Price Appreciation Rose at a Slower Pace in March
National home price appreciation rose at a slower pace in March as most metro areas experienced a deceleration in price growth. S&P Dow Jones Indices released the Home Price Index for March. The Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index rose at a seasonally adjusted annual growth rate of 5.4% in March, slower than the 6.8% increase in February. The purchase-only… Read More ›
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Modest Job Gains in April
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported the Employment Situation for April 2018. In April, job gains increased by 164,000 and the unemployment rate fell to 3.9%, the lowest rate since 2001. Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 164,000 in April, slightly faster than the increase of 135,000 jobs in March. The March increase was revised up from its original… Read More ›
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Home Price Appreciation Continued in February
In February, national home price appreciation continued, but at a slower pace than last month. Meanwhile, among all 20 metro areas which are covered by under the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index, only Washington DC recorded growth that lagged the nationwide rate of appreciation. The S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices released for February 2018 indicated that home prices nationwide, the National Home… Read More ›
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Younger Households More Likely to Have Auto Loans than Mortgages
Homeownership provides a distinct advantage for wealth accumulation. Although many households desire to purchase a home, the share of households living in owner-occupied housing remains low, following a steep decline associated with the Great Recession. Younger households, those under the age of 35, experienced the biggest declines in homeownership, although recent evidence suggests that the homeownership rate among these households… Read More ›
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Job Gains Slowed in March
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported the Employment Situation for March 2018. In March, job gains slowed and the unemployment rate remained at 4.1%. Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 103,000 in March, slower than the 326,000 job growth in February. The February increase was revised from its original estimate of a 313,000 increase. Despite smaller monthly increase in… Read More ›
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Consumer Confidence Drops in March, But Remains Elevated
The Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index declined in March, after increasing in February. The March decline in the Consumer Confidence Index reflects the declines in both the Present Situation Index and the Expectations Index. The Present Situation Index decreased by 0.8% from 161.2 to 159.9, while the Expectations Index declined by 2.7% from 109.2 to 106.2 in March. As a… Read More ›
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Home Price Appreciation Continued in January
In the first month of 2018, national home price appreciation continued, but at a slower pace than in December 2017. Meanwhile, more than half of the 20 metro areas had higher home price appreciation than the national level. S&P Dow Jones Indices released the Home Price Index for the first month of 2018. The Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index… Read More ›
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Homeownership is Key to Household Wealth
According to the 2016 Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF), nationally, the primary residence represents the largest asset category on the balance sheets of households in 2016 (as shown in Figure 1 below). At $24.2 trillion, the primary residence accounted for about one quarter of all assets held by households in 2016, surpassing other financial assets1 (20%), business interests (20%) and… Read More ›
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Homeowners’ Equity Expanding
The Financial Accounts of the United States for the fourth quarter of 2017 were released by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System recently. In the fourth of 2017, the aggregate market value of households’ real estate continues to improve on a nominal and not seasonally adjusted basis. On a nominal and not seasonally adjusted basis, households’ owner-occupied… Read More ›