When the bond yield curve had inverted in late August, the USA began to harbor recessionary fears. These fears have since diluted; a trend reflected by a slight increase in the mortgage rates over the last couple of months. America’s manufacturing sector is still under the pump and this creates an atmosphere of economic weakness. […]
At the time of writing this piece, we await the University of Michigan’s Consumer Sentiment Index. It is expected to rally close to 96. Mortgage shoppers will have their eyes glued to it. It is worth noting that the higher the number, the more optimistic the consumers are and hence more likely to make purchases […]
Existing-home sales in the Northeast, the Midwest, the West, and the South have all come down for the month of September, says the National Association of Realtors’s (NAR) housing stat. Three out of the four regions (except the Midwest) have, however, sold more homes compared to the numbers they sold a year ago. Total existing-home […]
Less than 10,000 condo projects out of the estimated 150,000-160,000 such projects across the country are approved for FHA financing. In the light of this stat, any guideline that opens up 20,000 to 60,000 condo units for FHA financing each year is a guideline worth getting ecstatic about. Precisely why the FHA’s longed-for condominium rules […]
Manufacturer sentiment has grown in October according to ISM’s October Manufacturing Index but the reading of 48.3, despite being an uptick on September’s 47.8, is still below 50 (chief wreckers being weak global growth cues, appreciated dollar and trade skepticism). This, though, spells good tidings for the mortgage market. With over a decade of following […]
The California Association of Realtors’s (CAR) housing market statistics reveal that the San Francisco Bay Area has had a mixed September when it comes to median sold prices of existing single-family homes. While Alameda, Marin, Napa, and Santa Clara are closing in the green, Counties Contra Costa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Solano, and Sonoma have […]
Call it the rise of the Planet Automaton, or simply, lack of productivity but wage growth (and it has foxed economists) is sluggishly seen in the light of the low unemployment rate. This is the exact opposite of how the cookie is supposed to crumble in times of expansion. Federal spending (up by 8% […]
The US economy added 140,000 jobs in September, thus keeping the unemployment rate hovering around the acceptable 3.7% mark. And so, though job growth has cooled, we are still at a point where the layoffs are not going out of hand- a possible turnabout that could compromise the US expansion project. Exports are weak, thanks […]
Play it any way you like it but Austin is not in a real estate bubble. Its property market is encouragingly poised. Housing demand is just where you would like to see it and inventory is pretty stretched. While the Austin market is not as big as Houston or Dallas, it has witnessed a near […]
Existing-home sales in the Northeast, the Midwest, and the South have registered second consecutive month of growth, says the National Association of Realtors’s (NAR) housing stat. Only the West has exhibited a decline in the number of existing homes sold in August. Total existing-home sales (single-family homes, townhomes, co-ops and condos) rose from 5.42 million […]
