ARCHIVED BLOG POSTS
2014
The National Association of Realtors reported on Monday that May Pending Home Sales surged 6.1% from April, a signal that the housing market continues on its road to recovery. It was the largest monthly gain since April of 2010 when buyers were chasing down the tax credit for first time home buye...
06/30/2014
The final reading for June Consumer Sentiment was released today coming in at 82.5 from the May level of 81.9. Sentiment has been steady for most of the past year, with one hiccup around the time of the government shutdown. The June survey recorded the largest proportion of households that report...
06/27/2014
0
Comments
Home loan rates dropped to lowest levels in a year this week after a weak Gross Domestic Product report was released on Wednesday. Freddie mac reported that the 30-year fixed conventional home loan rate hit 4.14%, but to obtain that rate a borrower would have to pay 0.5 in points/fees. A year ago...
06/26/2014
Economic growth across the U.S. contracted in the first quarter of 2014 due in part to Americans spending less on health care. The Commerce Department reported that Gross Domestic Product fell by -2.9%, which was the worst reading since the early 2009, at the height of the Great recession. Within...
06/25/2014
Housing data continued today with the Case Shiller 20-city Home Price Index for April being released showing that prices rose by 10.8% in the year ended in April, which was below the 11.6% that was expected. Home price appreciation has been slipping after the 13.7% year-over-year gain that was re...
06/24/2014
Housing news dominates the headlines this week as the sector tries to stabilize after the harsh winter weather early in the year weighed on the market. Black Knight Financial Services reported today that home prices rose 0.9% from March to April and were up 6.4% year-over-year. Within the report ...
06/23/2014
Freddie Mac released its June 2014 U.S. Economic and Housing Market Outlook this week revealing that nearly halfway through 2014, single-family housing remains weaker than what Freddie projected six months ago, while multi-family housing appears to be on track. Freddie Mac went on to say that it ...
06/20/2014
Consumer prices rose more than expected in May, led higher by rising costs for electricity, gasoline and food. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 0.4%, above the 0.3% gain in April to the highest rate since September 2012. The CPI measures consumer inflation and for the last 12 months, the ra...
06/17/2014
The manufacturing sector of the economy got a boost in June as the sector expanded more than expected. The New York Manufacturing Index rose to 19.3 and was up significantly for the second consecutive month. Labor markets conditions continued to improve, with indexes pointing to a modest increase...
06/16/2014
Low home loan rates fueled the surge in mortgage applications in the latest week as the spring buying season nears its end and summer buying begins. The Mortgage Bankers Association reported that its Market Composite Index, a measure of total loan application volume, increased by 10% in the lates...
06/11/2014
Rainmaker
301,605
301,605
Steve Reed
Steve Reed Branch Manager | Benchmark Home Loans