Data

The Census Bureau released on Monday its construction spending numbers for both September and October, catching up on releases delayed by the partial government shutdown. In September, total construction spending was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $901.2 billion, down from August's $903.8 billion. Spending for total residential construction, however, perked up, rising to an annual rate of $334.5 billion. Spending on homebuilding in October was down from the previous month, falling to an estimated rate of $332.9 billion.

Title365 Company, a provider of title insurance and escrow services based in California, announced the hiring of Jeremy Harmon as SVP of national sales.

The Index of Consumer Sentiment, a joint measure tracked by the University of Michigan and Thomson Reuters, rose to 75.1 for the final November tally, making up some of the ground lost in October, when it dropped to 73.2. Last year, the index was measured at 82.7. While November's improvement made up somewhat for October's shutdown-related losses, consumers still feel stung by the government's economic debate. Spontaneous negative references to the government's economic policies were made by 32 percent of Americans in November.

A new face has joined the Austin-based 360 Mortgage Group. Joseph Kowalewski has been brought on as regional manager of the East Region of the United States.

For the first time in two years, national home values registered a decline for two straight months, according to the Zillow Real Estate Market Reports released Tuesday. Furthermore, while annual gains continue, they are cooling, according to Zillow. "The months-long period of annual home value appreciation rates in the 6 and 7 percent range was great while it lasted, but we knew it would not continue indefinitely," said Zillow's chief economist, Stan Humphries.

Following a trend maintained over the past nine quarters, the Federal Housing Finance Agency's (FHFA's) Home Price Index (HPI) posted an increase over the third quarter. The index, which incorporates sales data from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, rose 2 percent over the third quarter and 8.4 percent over the year. Also notable, the third quarter is the first time since 2009 that national home prices are higher than they were five years earlier, according to FHFA.

The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index dropped two points to 70.4 in the most recent reading, the company reported. The decline follows a more substantial decrease in October stemming from the partial federal government shutdown. "Sentiment regarding current conditions was mixed, with consumers saying the job market had strengthened, while economic conditions had slowed," explained Lynn Franco, director of economic indicators at the Conference Board. "However, these sentiments did not carry over into the short-term outlook."

Appraisal Logistics, a Maryland-based provider of compliant appraisal management solutions for the mortgage industry, announced it has received the ISO 9001:2008 Certification for Quality Management Systems Standards by LQRA, passing a formal evaluation created to examine quality management standards in the financial services industry.

The Census Bureau and HUD jointly released their data on building permits for September and October, with data on housing starts and completions postponed due to a lack of funds as a result of the government shutdown. In October, privately owned housing units authorized by building permits were at a seasonally adjusted rate of 1.034 million--the strongest figure since June 2008. Permit activity picked up for both single- and multifamily properties.

Stewart Title of California announced the promotion of current group SVP Bob Oakland to the position of president.