NAHB Reports: Home Builder Confidence Drops in October

The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) reported that home builder sentiment lost its momentum in October and posted a seasonally adjusted reading of 54 in its Home Builder Market Index. This reading was five points lower than expected and also five points lower than September's reading. October's reading was the first time in five months that builder confidence has fallen. To put October's reading in perspective, things aren't all that bad. A reading over 50 indicates more builders are confident about housing market conditions than not. Also, October's lower reading of 54 after the HMI reading reached a nine-year…
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What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – October 14, 2014

Economic news was lean last week as the first week of the month tends to be calm in the aftermath of the rush of end-of-month reporting. Of note was CoreLogic's report on housing markets, the release of the minutes from the most recent FOMC meeting and lower mortgage rates reported by Freddie Mac. CoreLogic Reports Lowest Home Price Gains in Almost Two Years August home prices hit their slowest growth rate in nearly two years according to CoreLogic data released last Tuesday. Annual home prices grew by 6.40 percent in August as compared to July's reading of 6.80 percent. Year-over-year…
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What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – October 6, 2014

Last week's economic news included multiple reports on housing and the labor sector. The good news is that job markets appear to be stronger, with new jobless claims and the national unemployment rate lower. Unfortunately, housing continues to struggle in its recovery. Pending home sales slumped in August and the S&P Case-Shiller Housing Market Index reports for July showed slower growth in home prices with 19 of 20 cities posting lower gains than for June. Mortgage rates were mixed, but remained relatively steady. Housing Reports Show Slower Price Gains, Suggest Falling Demand The National Association of REALTORS® released data for…
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