ARCHIVED BLOG POSTS
2018
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The National Association of REALTORS® reports that Pending Home Sales unexpectedly declined in October by 2.6% from September, well below the gain of 0.5% expected. On an annual basis, sales fell 6.7%, the seventh straight month of annual decreases. Sales declined in the South, Midwest and the We...
11/29/2018
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The September Case-Shiller 20-City Index rose 5.1% from September 2017, just below the 5.3% expected and down from 5.5% in August. Month-over-month was unchanged. The slower pace of gains is to be expected and with faster-rising wages, it represents a healthier market. “Home prices plus data on h...
11/27/2018
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Ellie Mae released its Origination Insight Report revealing that closing rates in October rose to their highest percentage in 2018. Closing rates for all loans rose to 72.2% in October, the highest this year, up from 71.7% in September. Closing rates on refinanced loans remained at 76.4%. In addi...
11/26/2018
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As the holiday shopping season unfolds, retailers were giddy in October due in part to strong sales for motor vehicles and building materials. Retail Sales jumped 0.8% versus the 0.5% expected and were up from 0.1% in September. It was the largest increase since May's gain of 1.2%. The Core rate ...
11/15/2018
The October Consumer Price Index rose 0.3%, in line with estimates, though it was the largest increase since the 0.5% registered in January. The Core CPI was also in line at 0.2%. On a year-over-year basis, CPI rose to 2.5% from 2.3% in September and down from the 2018 high of 2.9% hit in June. T...
11/14/2018
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Fannie Mae released its Home Purchase Sentiment Index (HPSI) for October this week showing a decline in sentiment despite a favorable U.S. economy. The HPSI fell 2 points in October to 85.7, continuing its recent downward trend. The report revealed that the net share of Americans who said it is a...
11/09/2018
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CoreLogic reports that home prices nationwide, including distressed sales, rose 5.6% year over year in September 2018 compared to September 2017. The 5.6% is down from June's 7.1% year-over-year increase as home price gains moderate to more historical levels. Month--over month saw a 0.4% rise. Fr...
11/06/2018
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The service sector of the U.S. economy, which makes up a large portion of the economy, continued to strengthen in October. The ISM Service Index edged lower to 60.3, below the 21-year high of 61.6 hit in September. The report showed that every major sector of the service industry expanded in Octo...
11/05/2018