Last week’s economic news brought mixed developments as pending home sales moved to their second highest level of 2014. The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) announced the expected end of asset purchases under its quantitative easing program.
Case-Shiller 20 City Home Price Index And FOMC QE Update
Home prices rose by 0.20 percent in August. Three of the 20 cities tracked saw home prices drop, while Detroit, Michigan posted the highest price growth. The seasonally adjusted growth rate for cities tracked declined by 0.10 percent as compared to a decline of 0.10 percent in July.
What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – October 27, 2014
Last week’s economic news included a few developments connected with housing and mortgage industries. While no economic reports were released on Monday, the rest of the week provided good news for existing home sales, home prices and mortgage rates.
Good News! Existing Home Sales Up And FHFA Home Prices Rise
After months of reports of slowing home price momentum and forecasts of a lagging housing market, we are pleased to report an increase in volume of existing home sales.
What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – October 20, 2014
Last week’s economic highlights included the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) Housing Market Index for October. The Commerce Department also released Housing Starts for September. Freddie Mac reported that the average rate for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage dropped below four percent. The Fed released its Beige Book report, and Weekly jobless claims came in lower than expected.
NAHB Reports: Home Builder Confidence Drops in October
The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) reported that home builder sentiment lost its momentum in October and posted a seasonally adjusted reading of 54 in its Home Builder Market Index.
What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – October 14, 2014
Economic news was lean last week as the first week of the month tends to be calm in the aftermath of the rush of end-of-month reporting. Of note was CoreLogic’s report on housing markets, the release of the minutes from the most recent FOMC meeting and lower mortgage rates reported by Freddie Mac.
What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – October 6, 2014
Last week’s economic news included multiple reports on housing and the labor sector. The good news is that job markets appear to be stronger, with new jobless claims and the national unemployment rate lower.
National Association of Realtors, Existing Home Sales Slip in August
Sales of previously owned homes fell in August according to the National Association of REALTORS. This was the first decline in sales in five months. Although not welcome news to homeowners and real estate pros, there is good news…
What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – Sept 22, 2014
Last week’s economic news largely concerned the Federal Reserve’s FOMC meeting statement and a post-meeting conference given by Fed Chair Janet Yellen. The FOMC statement indicated that the Fed continued its wind-down of Treasury and mortgage-backed securities and that its purchases are expected to cease after the next FOMC meeting.