Eye On Housing
Author Archives
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Consumer Confidence in October – More Consumers Planned to Buy a Home in the Near Future
The Conference Board recently released the Consumer Confidence Index and its two subcomponents, the Present Situation Index and the Expectations Index, for October. The Consumer Confidence Index dropped to a level of 97.6 in October following the September’s optimistic assessment of 102.6. The present situation index declined to 112.1 from 120.3 in September, and the expectations index also decreased from… Read More ›
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Home Prices in August – Moving Toward Normal
S&P Dow Jones Indices released the August results for the S&P/Case-Shiller (CS) house price index. The index shows that house price appreciation accelerated to a seasonally adjusted annual growth rate of 5.4% in August, continuing its recovery from a late spring/early summer slowdown. After recovering from the boom and bust, the growth rate of the CS price index climbed back… Read More ›
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Lower Energy Prices, Lower Consumer Prices in September
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) declined at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.8% in September after slipping 0.8% in August. Excluding the volatile food and energy components, the “core” CPI rose at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 2.6% in September, faster than 0.9% in August. In September, energy prices dropped… Read More ›
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Consumer Confidence Rebounded in September
The Conference Board released its Consumer Confidence Index for September. The index is a composite of separate indexes tracking consumers’ assessments of current business, income and employment conditions, as well as their expectations for the future. The Consumer Confidence Index increased to a level of 103.0 in September from 101.3 in August. The present situation index rose to 121.1 from… Read More ›
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Existing Home Sales vs. Home Prices
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) and the Standard and Poor’s/Case-Shiller (CS) recently released their respective home price indexes for July. The FHFA index shows house price appreciation accelerated to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 7.3% in July. The CS index shows house prices rose at an annual growth rate of 4.6% in July. Both indexes have been rising… Read More ›
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Big Drops in Energy Prices in August
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) declined at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 0.8% in August, compared to 1.6% rise in July. Excluding the volatile food and energy components, the “core” CPI rose at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 0.9% in August, slower than 1.6% in July. In August, energy prices… Read More ›
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Slow Rise in Consumer Prices in July
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported consumer prices increased in July. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.6%, slower than 3.9% in June. Excluding the volatile food and energy components, the “core” CPI rose at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.6% in July. Energy prices were stabilized and rose at a… Read More ›
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Unexpected Decline in Consumer Confidence in July
Consumer sentiment and consumer confidence are two indexes showing consumers’ perceptions of current business, income and employment conditions, as well as their expectations for the future’s economy. In July, both the University of Michigan Index of Consumer Sentiment and the Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index declined unexpectedly after the solid growth in June. Despite the monthly declines the indexes have… Read More ›
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Home Price Growth Continues to Moderate in May
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) and the Standard and Poor’s/Case-Shiller recently released their respective home price indexes for May. The House Price Index (HPI) data reported by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) shows house prices rose at an annual growth rate of 5.4% in May, higher than the 4.7% in April and the 3.8% in March. The Standard… Read More ›
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Consumer Prices Increased Broadly in June
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported consumer prices increased broadly in June. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.9%, slower than 5.5% in May. Excluding the volatile food and energy components, the “core” CPI rose at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 2.2% in June. Large swings in energy prices account for… Read More ›