Household Finance includes blogs about personal income, consumer credit, household balance sheets, and mortgage interest rates.
The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) weekly survey, increase marginally by 2.9% month-over-month on a seasonally adjusted (SA) basis. Compared to December 2023, the index is higher by 10.2%. The Market Composite Index includes…
The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume by the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) weekly survey, decreased 14.5%, month-over-month, in November on a seasonally adjusted (SA) basis. The slowdown in mortgage activity can be attributed to higher mortgage rates as the ten-year…
Mortgage rates climbed in November, driven by market volatility and a surge in Treasury yields following the recent elections. On the day after the election results, the 10-year Treasury yield spiked by 14 basis points (bps), setting the stage for further rate increases throughout the…
Total outstanding U.S. consumer debt stood at $5.10 trillion for the third quarter of 2024, increasing at an annualized rate of 3.28% (seasonally adjusted), according to the Federal Reserve’s G.19 Consumer Credit Report. In general, consumer debt has been slowing over the past two years,…
The Fed cut the short-term federal funds rate by an additional 25 basis points at the conclusion of its November meeting, reducing the top target rate to 4.75%. However, while the Fed noted it is making progress to its 2% inflation target, it did not…
In October, mortgage rates reversed their recent downward trajectory, returning to levels two months earlier. According to Freddie Mac, the average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage increased 25 basis points (bps) from September to 6.43%. The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage saw an even steeper increase…
The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume by the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) weekly survey, decreased 13.9% month-over-month on a seasonally adjusted (SA) basis due to higher mortgage rates. This decline was reflected in both the Purchase and Refinance Indices, which…
