Loan Demand Declines as Credit Standards Tighten in Q4 2022

According to the Federal Reserve Board’s January 2023 Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey (SLOOS)—conducted for bank lending activity over the fourth quarter of last year—banks reported weaker demand for residential real estate (RRE) loans, home equity lines of credit (HELOCs), and commercial real estate (CRE) loans. Additionally, credit standards tightened across all categories of mortgage…

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OMB Proposes Standards on Building Materials Made in America

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has proposed new standards to determine if construction materials for federally funded infrastructure projects are made in the USA.  The new guidance, required by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act—also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL)—“sets standards to carry out the statutory requirement that all manufacturing processes…

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Housing Affordability Hits Record Low but Turning Point Lies Ahead

Mirroring a steep rise in mortgage rates that began in the early part of 2022 and coupled with ongoing building material supply chain bottlenecks that increased construction costs, housing affordability posted three consecutive quarterly declines in 2022 and now stands at its lowest level since the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) began tracking it…

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Growth of Revolving Debt Slows, Auto Loan Rates Spike in Q4 2022

The balance of consumer credit outstanding grew 6.5% in the fourth quarter of 2022 (seasonal adjusted annual rate) after climbing 6.7% (SAAR) in the third quarter according to the Federal Reserve’s latest G.19 Consumer Credit report.  Revolving debt—which consists primarily of credit card debt—increased at a 12.0% rate, as the level of nonrevolving debt (excluding real…

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Mortgage Activity Increases after Dip in Rates

Per the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) survey through the week ending February 3rd, total mortgage activity increased 7.4% from the previous week and the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) rate fell one basis point to 6.18%. The FRM rate has fallen around 100 basis points since October of 2022. The Market Composite Index, a measure…

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