home: Market Matters, February 24, 2018 Edition
- 02/24/18 12:58 PM
Existing Home Sales for January fell 3.2% month over month, and have now dropped 4.8% year over year. The market call was for a decline of 3.6%, so the result was just slightly better than expectations. Inventory, now sitting at a 19-year low, remains the real reason for the decline. While existing sales have been choppy, they are certainly on an uptrend, and that keeps sentiment on the positive side looking ahead. The MBA mortgage application volume for the week ending 2/16 showed purchase business fell 6%, with refis down 7%. The composite index was off 6.6%. With interest rates on the … (0 comments)
home: Market Matters, February 10, 2018 Edition
- 02/10/18 12:52 PM
The government shut down Thursday night at midnight, but reopened just a few hours later as the bill passed the House with the President signing around 7:40am CST Friday morning. Looking at the details of the bill, “…the two-year deal that raises spending levels $300 billion above the caps implemented in both the 2011 Budget Control Act and the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015. Defense spending will now increase $165B ($80B in 2018, $85B in 2019) and an additional $131B will go to nondefense spending ($63B in 2018, and $68B in 2019).” It also contains spending authority through March 23rd when … (0 comments)
home: Market Matters, February 3, 2018 Edition
- 02/03/18 10:02 AM
Personal Income and Spending were both up .4%. Wages and salaries also are showing solid gains of .5%. However, giving a hint of trouble ahead is that the savings rate dropped .1% to a 13-year low. We have also noticed an acceleration of credit in both credit cards and car loans over the past year, along with rising delinquencies. Not a healthy situation for consumers to follow. Case-Shiller’s Home Price Index rose .7% in November, matching the gains seen in October. Home prices are now up 6.2% year-on-year. Atlanta and Dallas, which have traditionally been affordable markets, are now posting double digit … (1 comments)
home: Market Matters, January 27, 2018 Edition
- 01/27/18 11:41 AM
Undeterred by higher interest rates, homebuyers led the MBA’s weekly applications for the week ending 1/19 higher by 6.0%. Refis rose 1.0% to put the composite index at plus 4.5%. Good start to the new year. Speaking of home sales, Existing Home Sales fell 3.6% in December following a 5.6% gain in November. Inventories across the country dropped to 3.4 months, the main culprit behind slowing sales in December. Still, at 5.75 million units, the market remains very strong. FHFA Home Price Index rose .4% in November and plus 6.5% year-on-year. The West North Central posted the highest gains at .9% … (0 comments)
home: Market Matters, January 20, 2018 Edition
- 01/20/18 08:28 AM
The January NAHB-Wells Fargo housing market index dipped two points to a reading of 72 from 74 in December. The data was right on with market expectations, as the consensus forecast was for a modest fall to 72. The NAHB index is at an elevated level that reflects some more significant optimism among homebuilders—rebuilding activity continues in disaster-affected areas, the housing market continues to suffer from problems with low supply, and the overall economy has some good momentum. Housing Starts for December fell by 8.2% to a 1.192mln unit rate from an upwardly revised 1.299mln unit rate back in November. The level … (0 comments)
Existing Home Sales for January fell 3.2% month over month, and have now dropped 4.8% year over year. The market call was for a decline of 3.6%, so the result was just slightly better than expectations. Inventory, now sitting at a 19-year low, remains the real reason for the decline. While existing sales have been choppy, they are certainly on an uptrend, and that keeps sentiment on the positive side looking ahead.
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