Eye On Housing
Recent jolts to the economy stemming in part from an intensified trade war with China have worried markets and resulted in a significant decline in interest rates as investors have shifted from equity to bonds. Lower interest rates present an opportunity for the housing market, which has failed so far to respond energetically to this positive development due to prior… Read More ›
Tag Archive for ‘interest rates’
Federal Reserve Reduces Rates in July
Perhaps as the most telegraphed interest rate cut of recent decades, the Federal Reserve reduced the key, short-term federal funds rate by 25 basis points to a top rate of 2.25%. This policy change is good for housing and home building, which continue to face housing affordability headwinds in spite of favorable demographics. There were two dissents to the announcement,… Read More ›
Homeowners Cautious with Lines of Credit Despite Equity Gains
The current release of the Federal Reserve’s Z.1 Financial Accounts report of the U.S., also known as the flow of funds report, shows a continuing increase in the market value of households in the U.S. Mortgage debt continues to expand as well, albeit at a much slower pace. The aggregate market value of houses represents assets on households’ balance sheets,… Read More ›
Rates on Construction Loans Back Off Slightly in the First Quarter
After rising throughout most of 2018, with one minor exception, interest rates on loans for residential acquisition, development, and construction (AD&C) backed off slightly in the first quarter of 2019, according to results from NAHB’s latest AD&C survey. The NAHB survey showed average first quarter interest rates of 6.56 percent on land acquisition loans, 6.25 percent on loans for land… Read More ›
Federal Reserve: Patience Continues
At the conclusion of its May meeting, the Federal Reserve held the key, short-term federal funds rate steady, with a top rate of 2.5%. The decision was unanimous and widely expected, with members of the Federal Open Market Committee agreeing that while economic growth conditions remain “solid,” inflation pressures remain anchored. In fact, the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge, the core… Read More ›
Top Challenges for Builders: Materials in 2018, Labor in 2019
Building material prices topped the list of problems builders faced in 2018, but cost and availability of labor is expected to return to the number one spot in 2019, according to special questions on the January survey for the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index. The survey results showed that material prices were a significant issue for 87% of builders last… Read More ›
Conventional Loan Market Share Hits 10-Year High
NAHB analysis of the most recent Quarterly Sales by Price and Financing published by the U.S. Census Bureau reveals that conventional loans accounted for 76.9% of new home sales in the fourth quarter of 2018, a 2.4-percentage point increase from Q3 2018. Although mortgage rates have moderated in 2019, the increase in conventional mortgage market share in late-2018 was contemporaneous… Read More ›
Interest Rates on Construction Loans Showed Rising Trend in 2018
Interest rates on loans for residential acquisition, development, and construction (AD&C) generally increased throughout 2018, according to results from NAHB’s fourth quarter AD&C survey. For the fourth quarter, builders and developers responding to the survey reported a median interest rate that varied from 5.75% on loans for pre-sold single-family construction, to 5.88% on loans for land development, to 6.00% on loans… Read More ›
Interest Rates on Consumer Credit Increase by the End of 2018
The latest data from the Federal Reserve Board’s G.19 Consumer Credit report show that all non-mortgage consumer credit, i.e., excluding loans secured by real estate, increased 5.0% in December, with revolving and nonrevolving credit increasing 2.0% and 6.0%, respectively. The current outstanding levels of debt, on a seasonally adjusted basis, are $1.04 trillion for revolving debt and $2.97 trillion for… Read More ›
Fed Pursues Patience
As expected, the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy body, the Federal Open Market Committee, unanimously agreed to hold steady the federal funds top rate at 2.5%. The Fed’s January statement was consistent with recent policymakers’ comments suggesting a more flexible stance toward monetary policy at the end of last year and the start of 2019. In particular, the statement indicated that… Read More ›