ARCHIVED BLOG POSTS
2014
Americans filing for first time unemployment benefits rose in the latest week after declining to a 14-year low in the previous week. The Labor Department reported that Weekly Initial Jobless Claims rose by 23,000 in the week ended July 26 to 302,000, which was just below the 310,000 expected. The...
07/31/2014
Economic growth across the U.S. surged in the second quarter of 2014 after negative growth due to harsh weather in the first three months of this year. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the first reading on second quarter Gross Domestic Product (GDP) rose by 4%, above the 3.2% expected...
07/30/2014
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The May S&P Case Shiller 20-city Home Index showed a year-over-year gain of 9.3%, down from the 10.8% recorded in April and below the 10.0% expected. The price gains have been decreasing, coming back down to more normal levels after the big gains seen in 2013. In fact, from April to May there was...
07/29/2014
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Economic news was on the light side today with just the June Durable Orders report being released showing that orders for products lasting at least three years rose by 0.7%. The 0.7% was a rebound after the decline seen in May and above the 0.3% expected. Gains were seen in demand for commercial ...
07/25/2014
Freddie Mac released its July U.S. Economic and Housing Market Outlook this week showing mixed data results for the housing recovery as we head into the second half of the year. The report said that after a disappointing first part of the year, expect home sales to play catch up and accelerate fo...
07/23/2014
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The housing sector received some good news on Tuesday as the National Association of REALTORS® reported that June Existing Home Sales rose by 2.6% from May to an annual rate of 5.04 million units. That was slightly above the 5.0 million expected. However, the 5.04 million is 2.3% below the 5.16 m...
07/22/2014
Home price appreciation in the past few years may have topped out, says a report from Bank of America Merrill Lynch. The bank said that Americans should prepare for a few years of stagnant prices. Home prices were undervalued by 6% at the end of 2011, says the report, but are now nearly 10% overv...
07/21/2014
Just midway through July and we are already seeing signs for back-to-school supplies, the second biggest selling season of the year. The National Retail Federation reports that the cost this year is expected to be higher than last year. The average family with children in grade through high schoo...
07/18/2014
The housing market received some sub-par news this morning as the sector slows down after the big gains seen in 2013. The Commerce Department reported that June Housing Starts declined by 9.3% to an annual rate of 893,000, well below the 1.020 million expected. The 893,000 was the slowest pace in...
07/17/2014
The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) reported on Wednesday that its July Housing Market Index rose four points to 53, above the 50 expected. It was the first reading above 50 this year, which indicates sales conditions as good. Below 50, indicates poor conditions. The index covers new...
07/16/2014