Friday, November 15, 2024

Housing Markets

More Americans Open to Living in Modular Homes

An increasing number of Americans are open to the idea of living in modular housing, a recent survey conducted for Amherst shows. The survey, conducted...

Pending Home Sales Increased Last Month but Storms, Rising Rates Will Reverse the Trend

Pending home sales increased 2% on an annual basis during the four weeks ended October 6, the biggest increase in three years, according to...

FHFA Adds Manufactured Home Price Index to its HPI Report

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) has launched a new index measuring price trends for manufactured homes using national datasets. The new index provides quarterly...

Which NFL Divisions Have the Highest Priced Housing Markets?

Just for kicks, First American recently conducted an analysis of which National Football League divisions represent the most expensive housing markets. The firm’s analysis shows...

Consumer Confidence in Housing Market Reaches Highest Level in Two Years

Consumer confidence in the housing market increased in September, as per Fannie Mae’s Home Purchase Sentiment Index (HPSI), which rose to a score of...

MBA and 13 Industry Stakeholders Form Group to Address Racial Homeownership Gap

The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) and 13 mortgage industry stakeholders have formed the Convergence Collaborative, a coordinated effort to identify and develop solutions to...

Lack of Inventory Will Continue to Boost Home Price Appreciation

U.S. home prices are forecast to rise 3.1% over the next 12 months, according to valuations firm Veros. That’s down from the firm's Q2 forecast...

Strong September Jobs Report Shows Resilient U.S. Economy

The U.S. economy added 254,000 jobs in September - far better than was forecast - and the unemployment rate remained flat at 4.1% compared...

HUD Announces $279M to Upgrade 3,500 Properties Under the Green and Resilient Retrofit Program

The Biden-Harris administration has committed more than $279 million to upgrade about 3,500 properties that are vulnerable to climate change-related disasters. The properties, which span...

First American: Affordability Improving But Firm Remains ‘Cautiously Optimistic’ 

Home affordability improved in August, due mainly to lower mortgage rates, says First American. In fact, it was the first time since 2021 that...

Homebuyer Affordability Improved in August

The national median mortgage payment applied for by borrowers was $2,057 in August —down $83 from July and down $113, or 5.2%, from August...

Pending Homes Sales Barely Increased in August

Pending home sales inched up 0.6% in August compared with July but were down 3% compared with August 2023, according to the National Association...

iEmergent Downwardly Revises its Forecast After Weak Purchase Volume in 2024 

Forecasting and advisory services firm iEmergent has downwardly revised its 2024-2026 U.S. Mortgage Origination Forecast and now expects lower-than-anticipated growth for the next two...

How AI Can Help Solve the Mortgage Industry’s Cyclical ‘Problem’

BLOG VIEW: The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) on Sept. 18 announced its decision to cut the Fed Funds rate by half a percentage...

New Home Sales Fell in August as Buyers Wait on the Sidelines

After increasing more than 10% in July, new home sales went back on the decline in August, falling 4.7% to an annual adjusted rate...

Home Price Appreciation Slowed for an Eighth Consecutive Month in August

U.S. home prices increased a mere 0.1% in August compared with July and were up 4.5% compared with August 2023, according to First American’s...

Existing-Home Sales Fell Again in August, Despite Declining Mortgage Rates

Despite a decrease in mortgage rates, existing-home sales fell 2.5% in August compared with July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.86 million,...

Home Flipping Volume Decreased in Q2 But Profit Margins Continued to Increase

About 79,000 homes were flipped during the second quarter, representing about 7.5% of all home sales, according to ATTOM’s U.S. Home Flipping Report. That’s down...

Existing-Home Sales Will Not See Meaningful Growth for the Remainder of 2024  

Despite a significant decline in mortgage rates and improved supply in some parts of the country, existing home sales are not expected to pick...

Fed Cuts Rates for First Time Since the Start of the Pandemic

Citing that inflation has made further progress toward its 2% goal, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) today voted to cut the Fed Funds...