Eye On Housing
For the week ending November 14, weekly initial jobless claims rose for the first time since early October. Continuing claims, which lag initial jobless claims by one week, continued a downward trend for the week ending November 7. The labor market has been recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic gradually for the past seven months. Looking forward, the path to recovery… Read More ›
The Federal Reserve’s latest Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey on Bank Lending Practices addresses changes in the standards and terms on, and demand for, bank loans to businesses and households. The lending data show a tightening of standards across all purposes , but sufficient demand-strength for gains in residential real estate. For the third quarter, significant net shares of banks… Read More ›
Weekly initial jobless claims declined slightly for the week ending November 7, and continuing claims, which lag initial jobless claims by one week, continued a downward trend for the week ending October 31. Labor market continues to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic but the pace is slow. According to the Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims Report released by the U.S. Department… Read More ›
In October 2020, the spread between the 10-year Treasury yield and the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rate, as measured by Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS), significantly narrowed as Treasury rates were pushed upward in anticipation of a vaccine breakthrough and a rebound in the labor market and as mortgage rates remained low. At the beginning of October, the 10-year… Read More ›
The Federal Reserve’s latest G.19 Consumer Credit Report shows trends in consumer credit, excluding loans secured by real estate, through September 2020. In the third quarter of 2020, consumer credit increased at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 2-1/4 percent, while nonrevolving credit increased by 4 percent and revolving credit decreased by 2-1/2 percent. In September, consumer credit increased at… Read More ›
The recovery of overall labor market continued but at a slow pace. In October, 638,000 nonfarm payroll jobs were added, and the unemployment rate fell to 6.9%. However, October residential construction employment was 11,500 higher than a year ago, marking the first year-over-year gain since the recession of 2020. Residential construction employment rose by 23,800 in October to 2.9 million… Read More ›
Weekly initial jobless claims declined slightly for the week ending October 31, and continuing claims, which lag initial jobless claims by one week, continued a downward trend for the week ending October 24. The modest decreases in initial and continuing claims reflect that labor market continues to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic but the pace is slow. According to the… Read More ›
The Mortgage Bankers Association’s latest Weekly Application Survey shows that, for the week ending October 30, 2020, mortgage application activity increased by 3.8% from the prior week on a seasonally adjusted basis, as indicated by its Market Composite Index. One of its two constituent indexes, the Purchasing Index, decreased by 0.1% from the previous week while the other, the Refinance… Read More ›
Weekly initial jobless claims decreased for the week ending October 24, and continuing claims, which lag initial jobless claims by one week, fell for the week ending October 17. The decreases in initial and continuing claims reflect that labor market continues to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic gradually. According to the Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims Report released by the U.S…. Read More ›
The U.S. economy rose at the fastest rate on record in the third quarter of 2020 as the economy recovery took hold. Real GDP in the third quarter was close to the pre-recession level, but further recovery is needed. According to the “advance” estimate released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), real gross domestic product (GDP) increased at an… Read More ›