Author Archives
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Housing Permits Started 2020 Strong
Over the first month of 2020 – and prior to the impact of the coronavirus, the total number of single-family permits issued year-to-date (YTD) nationwide reached 70,386. On a year-over-year (YoY) basis, this is a 21.2% increase over the January 2019 level of 58,086. Year-to-date ending in January, single-family and multifamily permits reported growth across the country. Northeast led in… Read More ›
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Mortgage Rates Fall Back in February
Information compiled by Freddie Mac shows that mortgage rates decreased on a month-over-month basis. As of end of February, the 30-year FRM – Commitment rate, declined by 16 basis points to 3.47 percent from 3.62 percent in January. The cycle peak was 4.87 percent in 2018 November. Given the recent market volatility, the Federal Reserve cut the benchmark interest rate… Read More ›
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Housing Starts Mark a Solid Start in 2020
Total housing starts posted a 3.6 percent decline in January (1.57 million units) compared to an upwardly revised December estimate of 1.63 million units according to the joint data release from the Census Bureau and HUD. Relative to January 2019 (during the housing soft patch), total starts are 21.4 percent above the annual pace of 1.29 million units. Single-family starts… Read More ›
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Sluggish Rebound in Single-Family Permits in December
Over the year 2019, the total number of single-family permits issued year-to-date (YTD) nationwide reached 854,158. On a year-over-year (YoY) basis, this is a 0.2% increase over the December 2018 level of 852,856. Year-to-date ending in December, single-family permits reported declines in three regions and an increase in the South. The Northeast reported the steepest decline by 6.8%. The… Read More ›
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Texas Led GDP Growth in the Third Quarter of 2019
Real gross domestic product (GDP) increased in 49 states and the District of Columbia, in the third quarter 2019 compared to the previous quarter. Delaware recorded no change during this time. The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis reported the real GDP growth rates, measured on a seasonally adjusted annual rate basis, ranged from 4.0% in Texas to 0.4% in Hawaii. Nationwide,… Read More ›
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Texas Leads Job Gains in December
Year-over-year (YoY), total nonfarm employment increased by 2.1 million jobs on a seasonally adjusted basis (SA), or 1.4% from December 2018 to December 2019. During this time, total nonfarm employment in the Western region increased by 2.0%. The South, Northeast, and Midwest recorded gains at 1.8%, 0.9% and 0.5% respectively, during this time. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics,… Read More ›
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Strong Growth Rate for Housing Starts Going into 2020
Total housing starts posted a 16.9 percent increase in December (1.608 million units) compared to a upwardly revised November estimate of 1.375 million units according to the joint data release from the Census Bureau and HUD. Relative to December 2018, total starts are 40.8 percent above the annual pace of 1.14 million units, a pace that will likely be revised… Read More ›
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Slow Rebound in Single-Family Permits in November
Over the first eleven months of 2019, the total number of single-family permits issued year-to-date (YTD) nationwide reached 791,452. On a year-over-year (YoY) basis, this is a 1.0% decline over the November 2018 level of 799,679. Year-to-date ending in November, single-family permits reported declines in three regions and a slight increase in the South. The Northeast reported the steepest… Read More ›
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Mortgage Rates Continue to Increase in December
For the third consecutive month, information compiled by Freddie Mac shows that mortgage rates increased slightly on a year-over-year basis. As of end of December 2019, the 30-year FRM – Commitment rate, increased by two basis points to 3.72 percent from 3.70 percent in November. The cycle peak was 4.87 percent in 2018 November. The Federal Reserve maintained the benchmark… Read More ›
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Regional Data on Single-Family Permits in October
Over the first ten months of 2019, the total number of single-family permits issued year-to-date (YTD) nationwide reached 727,301. On a year-over-year (YoY) basis, this is a 1.6% decline over the October 2018 level of 739,120. Year-to-date ending in October, single-family permits reported declines in three regions and a slight increase in the South. The Northeast reported the steepest decline… Read More ›