Tag Archives: Capital Economics

Consumer confidence rose in October to its highest level this year, according to a survey released by The Conference Board.

In a US Housing Market Update released by the firm, analyst and property economist Paul Diggle notes that while "a substantial overhang of properties still in the shadow inventory" will keep distressed sellers in the market, the peak in distressed supply appears to be well behind us, giving homebuilders more room to grow with less competition from discounted homes. In addition, short sales--typically sold at a smaller discount--have been gaining traction as foreclosure sales drop, creating "less of a depressing influence on the new-build market."

When it comes to the continuation of current housing policies, both President Obama and Governor Romney largely agree.

Even with the record-low mortgage rates seen today, refinancing numbers are still not as high as expected. In CoreLogic's most recent MarketPulse report, Sam Khater and Molly Boesel noted, "the overall level of refinancing is still low given current mortgage rates, and there are still many homeowners nationwide with above market rates." Despite the new expansions from HARP 2.0, including the removal of its 125 percent LTV ceiling, other restrictions are still preventing homeowners from refinancing.

The price premium attached to newly-built homes has fallen over the past six months, Capital Economics observed.

Experts across the country wasted no time in responding to Friday's unemployment report, and the responses ranged from celebration to healthy skepticism. As pundits waged a war over the significance of the report, Capital Economics focused its view less on politics and more on its own breakdown of the data, noting that while the growth was modest, the overall report was encouraging. Wall Street also reacted, with banks and construction firms seeing stock upticks.

Mortgage applications saw increased activity in the last week of September, the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) reported.

Having reached its apparent peak in June, construction spending continued its backward slide in August, the Census Bureau reported.

When he ran for the presidency in 1980, Ronald Reagan, then Republican governor of California, struck at then-President Jimmy Carter over the strength of the economy. His question for Americans: "Are you better off now than you were four years ago?" That's the question Paul Ashworth and Paul Dales, senior analysts with Capital Economics, offered to answer in a report released by the consultancy on Friday. The report breaks down recent economic trends, including GDP, home sales, and median income.

Underwater homeowners are contributing to a lower inventory of houses for sale on the market, but according to Capital Economics negative equity will not have a major impact on housing prices. Regardless of the impact of negative equity, both Capital Economics and the National Association of Realtors foresee rising prices in the near future. The percentage of underwater homeowners is falling but remains elevated. CoreLogic said that 11.4 million homeowners were underwater in the first quarter.