Eye On Housing
Author Archives
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Residential Construction Down in June
Following two consecutive monthly increases, single-family starts fell by 9.1 percent over the month of June to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 858,000, according to a joint release by the Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. However, over the quarter, starts of single-family houses was about flat, rising by 1.2 percent to 900,000. This is… Read More ›
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Slightly Longer Hours Worked Makes Up For Faster Inflation
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that, on a seasonally adjusted basis, headline consumer prices, grew over the month of June, but at a slower pace than in May. The monthly slowdown partly reflected a decline in energy prices, electricity and utility (piped) gas specifically, although food prices accelerated over the month. Excluding energy and food prices, “core” inflation held… Read More ›
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Mortgage Rates Remain Elevated
The Federal Housing Finance Agency reported that mortgage rates on purchases of newly built homes rose by seven basis points over the month of May 2018 to 4.51 percent, marking the seventh consecutive monthly increase. However, information compiled by Freddie Mac suggests that mortgage rates may have taken a breather in June. Despite the two basis points decline in mortgage… Read More ›
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New Home Sales Rise, But Only In The South
Sales of new single-family homes rose by 6.7 percent in May to reach a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 689,000 according to a report released by the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. A downward revision to the sales pace in April, from 662,000 to 646,000, partly contributed to the increase in sales. Regionally,… Read More ›
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Fed Raises Target Range, Communicates More Hikes in ’18 but Fewer in ‘20
As was widely expected, the Federal Open Markets Committee (FOMC), the monetary policy making arm of the Federal Reserve, raised the target federal funds rate to a range of 1.75 percent to 2.00 percent from a range of 1.5 percent to 1.75 percent. Going forward, the median projection of the federal funds rate at the end of this year rose,… Read More ›
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Consumer Prices Rise
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that consumer inflation rose by 0.2 percent in May, similar to its growth rate in April. Both food and energy prices decelerated over the month, but the slowdown in these items was offset by an acceleration in core CPI to 0.2 percent, from 0.1 percent in April. Over the year, headline inflation climbed… Read More ›
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Mortgage Rates Remain Higher
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) reported that mortgage rates on purchases of newly built homes continued to climb in April and additional evidence from Freddie Mac indicates that mortgage rates more generally rose in May as well. However, average mortgage rates have moderated over the first week of June. Mortgage rates reported by Freddie Mac are above the most recent… Read More ›
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First Quarter Economic Growth Confirmed
The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) reported that economic growth, measured by the annualized growth rate of real GDP, was revised to 2.2 percent from the advance estimate of 2.3 percent. The modest downward revision confirms the extent of economic growth over the first quarter of the year. The second estimate of first quarter GDP also included the first estimate… Read More ›
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New Home Sales Decline
Sales of new homes fell by 1.5 percent over the month of April to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 662,000. According to the report released by the Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the small monthly decline partly reflected a downward revision to the estimate of new home sales in March from 694,000 to 672,000…. Read More ›
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Standards on AD&C Loans Ease, Interest Rates Expected to Rise
Builders and developers responding to NAHB’s AD&C Financing Survey continue to report easing credit conditions for acquisition, development, and single-family construction loans, over the first quarter of 2018, but the pace of easing slowed. At the same time, the majority of survey respondents indicated that the typical loan they obtained in the first quarter of 2018 was tied to a… Read More ›