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Responding again to higher mortgage rates, the Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) slipped for the third straight month, dropping 1.6 percent in August to 107.7--the lowest level since April, the National Association of Realtors (NAR), which compiles the index, reported Thursday. NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun said the drop was expected as a consequence of buyers accelerating purchase decisions while mortgage rates were first increasing.

The nation's economy grew at an annual rate of 2.5 percent in the second quarter, the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) revealed Thursday. Economists had expected the report--the third in the series of monthly GDP reports by the BEA--to show the economy had grown at a 2.8 percent annual rate, which would have been faster than the 2.5 percent growth rate BEA reported a month ago.

Continuing the drop in first-time claims for unemployment insurance, initial filings fell 5,000 for the week ending September 21 to 305,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Economists had expected the number of claims to jump up to 330,000 from the 309,000 originally reported for the week ending September 14. The number of filings for that week was revised up to 310,000.

According to Homes.com's latest report, 22 of the top 100 markets in the United States reported price increases of more than 100 percent from their respective troughs, up from 19 the month prior. Marketing analyst Nicole Selvaggi explained that most of the markets that have come back completely "never suffered the significant numbers of foreclosures and short sales that characterized the housing economy from 2007 to 2012," and seven of the top 20 have benefited greatly from energy development from oil, gas, shale, or coal.

Household net worth improved $1.3 trillion in the second quarter--half as fast as the first quarter--as real estate values grew $626.7 billion, the Federal Reserve reported Wednesday in its quarterly Flow of Funds report. But, with a drop in mortgage debt--including home equity loans and lines of credit--from $9.39 trillion in the first quarter to $9.34 billion in the second--homeowner equity grew to 49.8 percent in the second quarter from 48.1 percent in the first.

Builders lowered prices and buyers responded in August, pushing new home sales up 7.9 percent to 421,000, reversing almost half of July's 64,000 drop in sales, the Census Bureau and HUD reported Wednesday. The report for August showed a slight shift away from higher-priced homes as houses priced at $500,000 or more accounted for 9 percent of August sales, down from 12 percent in July. Homes priced at $300,000 or less represented 63 percent of all August sales, unchanged from July.

The First National Bank of Long Island (FNBLI) is now using Fiserv's Common Origination Platform for its consumer, business, and mortgage lending needs, the companies announced jointly.

Zillow's Home Value Index climbed to $162,100 in August, up 0.4 percent month-over-month and 6.6 percent annually--the largest yearly gain since July 2006, when values rose 7.9 percent. "August marked the end of one of the hottest summer home shopping seasons in years, as home value appreciation rates continued their rocket ride upward--perhaps dangerously so in some metro areas," said Zillow chief economist Stan Humphries, noting that the monthly pace of appreciation has started to moderate.

The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) has appointed Harry Gardner to the board of directors for the Mortgage Industry Standards Maintenance Organization (MISMO), the trade group announced.

Home prices rose in July by less than 2 percent for the first time since March but still reached their highest level since August 2008, according to the Case-Shiller Home Price Indices released Tuesday. All 20 cities included in the survey improved both month-to-month and year-to-year. The two surveys have improved both monthly and yearly for 14 consecutive months.