The omnibus bill cleared Congress on Friday and now goes to President Joe Biden’s desk for his signature. Congress gave final approval Friday to a bipartisan bill to fund the government through Sept. 30, 2023, clearing the last major piece of legislation for the year. President Joe Biden is expected to sign the measure into law Friday. Included in the bill are an extension of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) through Sept. 30 and a ho
Borrowing costs have been moderating over the past six weeks, declining significantly after breaking 7% last month. Mortgage rates have been moderating over the past six weeks, declining significantly after hitting a 7.08% high last month. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is settling into the 6% range, averaging 6.27% this week, Freddie Mac reports.Homeownership has become nearly 10% more affordable in this time as rates have eased. The average mo
(1) One indicator with a strong record for reliability concerning the health of the U.S. labor market is the weekly initial jobless claims figure released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). A number above 300,000 generally correlates with high unemployment and recession. As the figure descends below 300,000, however, the labor market is tightening. Down around 200,000, the unemployment rate will be about as low as it ever manages to go. Tha
Sales of existing homes in November fell 7.7% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.09M, according to data released Wednesday by the National Association of Realtors Existing-home sales dropped for the tenth-consecutive month in November, according to data released Wednesday by the National Association of Realtors.Sales of existing homes in November fell to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.09 million, a 7.7 percent drop f
Confidence among U.S. single-family home builders fell for a record 12th straight month in December as even a scramble to offer incentives for prospective buyers failed to boost traffic and lift sales in today's high-inflation, high-interest rate environment.Kicking off a week of key reports on the health of the foundering U.S. housing market, the National Association of Home Builders on Monday said its NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index dropp
Housing starts fell 0.5% below October levels, to a seasonally adjusted rate of 1.43M, while completions rose 10.8% month over month, according to US Census Bureau data issued Tuesday Housing starts and new building permits both posted declines in November while building completions logged a monthly increase during the same period, according to U.S. Census Bureau data released Tuesday.Newly issued building permits dropped 11.2
Year-over-year rent growth dropped to the lowest level June 2021, but remained 3 times higher than the historical average before the onset of COVID-19, according to data Tuesday by CoreLogic Single-family rent slowed for the sixth-consecutive month in October but remained 8.8 percent higher than where it was the year before, according to a new report from a leading data firm tracking rent prices.The year-over-year growth was the lowest
NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun draws the distinctions between today’s real estate market and that of more than a decade ago. Many homeowners are still haunted by the 2008 housing crash when property values collapsed and foreclosures spiked. The memory of sudden catastrophe at a time when the real estate market had been riding high may help explain why 41% of Americans say they now fear a housing crash in the next year, according to a new surv
Economic news this week spelled better news for home buyers who are shopping for a mortgage, even after the Federal Reserve’s latest rate hike. Mortgage rates continued to dial back this week as new economic data showed inflation is further cooling off. Freddie Mac reported Thursday that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.31% this week. Rates have been decreasing ever since hitting a high of 7.08% last month.The decreasing rates are mak
As the housing market cools quickly, house flippers are finding it harder to make fast profits.In the third quarter, gross flipping profit, which is the difference between the median purchase price paid by investors and the median resale price, dropped to $62,000, according to ATTOM, a real estate data provider. That’s down 18.4% from the second quarter and down 11.4% year-over-year. It represents the smallest profit since the end of 2019 and t
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