Tag Archives: Home Sales

Overall, Fannie's outlook is "largely unchanged from the previous forecast," although "fiscal uncertainties associated with the federal government shutdown, the protracted negotiations to raise the debt ceiling, and the timing of the Federal Reserve's tapering of its asset purchase program, pose significant downside risks to economic activity in the current quarter," said Doug Duncan, chief economist at Fannie Mae. As such, the GSE is revising its forecasted GDP growth for this year from 2 percent to 1.9 percent.

The once-volatile housing market is making strides toward equilibrium, according to a new report from Realtor.com.

On a monthly basis, home prices rose 0.6 percent in August, according to FNC's Residential Price index (RPI), a measure of price changes in the country's 100 large metropolitan areas. On a yearly basis, the increase is 5.3 percent. The monthly gain in August was smaller than the gains accrued over the two previous months--a sign that the recovery remains uneven across the nation, FNC says. With seasonal trends usually putting a drag on housing measures, the deceleration can be expected to go on.

The frenzy that has characterized the 2013 housing market has officially come to a close, Redfin says in its latest Real-Time Price Tracker. The tech-powered brokerage reported a seasonal drop in home sales, prices, and inventory in September, though the recovery's strength is still evident in year-over-year gains. Current trends point to continued declines in the months ahead--an expected turn as demand from homebuyers starts to slow down in fall and winter.

Builder data tracked by the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) indicates mortgage applications for new home purchases decreased from August to September. MBA's monthly Builder Application Survey (BAS) suggests new home purchase application volume declined 1 percent month-over-month in September. Using that data and other assumptions regarding market coverage, MBA estimates sales of new single-family homes ran at an adjusted annual rate of 459,000.

Real estate agents say the housing market is beginning to shift from seller control, and they expect price gains to moderate over the next several months, according to the latest survey from Redfin.

Though recent reports seem to indicate a hitch in the ongoing housing recovery, Fitch Ratings maintains its expectations of a healthy increase in housing metrics through this year and the next. "As we have noted previously, recovery in the housing market will likely occur in fits and starts and housing absolute numbers are still low relative to past cycles," the company said in its latest analysis. "Expansion should not be expected as a total slope upward, as there are a number of variables that intervene."

DataQuick's monthly Property Intelligence Report (PIR), which examines home price and sales metrics as well as foreclosure data across 42 counties, is the latest in a line of reports pointing to mounting evidence that the housing recovery is losing some of its energy. According to the company's data, home prices in August grew in 40 of the 42 counties on a monthly basis and in all counties on a quarterly and yearly basis. However, though growth was positive, the rate of improvement is on the decline.

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.

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.