Data

In a quarterly survey conducted by Zillow and Pulsenomics, a panel of economists, real estate experts, and market strategists agreed that the median age of first-time homebuyers is likely to keep moving up in the next decade as millennials wait until later in their lives to purchase. Among the more than 100 experts polled, a combined 85 percent said they expect the median first-time homebuyer age to rise at least marginally in the coming years.

U.S. payrolls grew less than expected in July, a potential sign that the labor market recovery might be cooling following an early summer hiring spike.

The U.S. economy experienced a sharp turnaround from the first quarter to the second, fueling hopes of a rebound as the rest of the year plays out. Real gross domestic product (GDP) increased at an annual rate of 4.0 percent in the second quarter of the year, according to an advance estimate released by the Commerce Department. Growth came in at the high end of a survey of economists, with the consensus forecast calling for an increase of 3.1 percent.

After fizzling out over the past several quarters, the post-recession refinance boom officially ended in the quarter, according to data from Freddie Mac. The mortgage behemoth released on Tuesday the results of its quarterly refinance analysis for Q2, showing that refinancing fell in the last three months to below 50 percent of total mortgage activity as rising interest rates have stifled demand.

According to an estimate from the Census Bureau, the U.S. homeownership rate was 64.7 percent in the second quarter, a decrease of 0.1 percentage point from the first quarter's previous low and 0.3 percentage points from the same time last year. It was the lowest rate since 1995. Homeownership continued to slide among the millennial age group, who find themselves burdened by high debt, tight credit conditions, and limited job prospects.

The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index reached 90.9 in the group's July survey, up from 86.4 in June. As of July, the index stands at its highest level since before the Great Recession. Lynn Franco, director of economic indicators at the Conference Board, said the surge was fueled by strong job growth and a brighter short-term outlook for the labor market and personal incomes.

The S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices, released Tuesday, showed house prices gained 9.3 percent across 20 of the country's biggest cities, down substantially from the 10.8 percent increase recorded for April and the slowest growth rate since February 2013. Economists had expected an increase of 9.9 percent for May.

NAR's Pending Home Sales Index, an indicator of future home sales based on contract signings, fell to 102.7 last month, down 1.1 percent from May and 7.3 percent from June 2013. NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun said that while the housing market is stabilizing, ongoing challenges are holding sales back from their full potential.

Home prices in May hit a national index value of $239,000, according to Black Knight Financial Services' most recent Home Price Index (HPI) report.

Despite an anticipated pickup in economic growth and housing recovery in the second half of this year, Fannie Mae expects the economy to grow at just 1.5 percent overall this year. Fannie revised its previous estimate of 2.1 percent growth for 2014 after a disappointing start to the year.