Monthly Archives: July 2010

No doubt you’ve heard that mortgage rates are low. They’re lower than they’ve ever been in history. The news is everywhere. Just check out some of these headlines from the last 24 hours: Mortgage rates set new lows for the … Continue reading →

For the second consecutive month, U.S. consumer confidence is plunging. July’s official reading is its lowest since July of last year and the figures run in stark contrast to just two months ago, when the index touched a multi-year high. … Continue reading →

Standard & Poors released its Case-Shiller Index Tuesday. On a seasonally-adjusted basis, between April and May 2010, home prices rose in 19 of Case-Shiller’s 20 tracked markets. It’s the second straight month of strong Case-Shiller findings. Also, May’s numbers are … Continue reading →

After a down month in May, the sales of newly-built homes appears back on track. As published by the Census Bureau, June’s New Home Sales report showed: A 24 percent sales volume increase from the month prior A 2-month drop … Continue reading →

Mortgage markets worsened last week for the first time in 6 weeks last week. Investors were pleased with corporate earnings reports and the European bank stress tests results. Stocks gained on the news, and bonds lost. Mortgage rates rose last … Continue reading →

Consistent with most post-home buyer tax credit housing news, the National Association of Realtors

The New York Times ran an important story this week concerning pregnancy and mortgage approvals. Titled “Need a Mortgage? Don’t Get Pregnant“, the article discussed the difficulties that expecting and recently-expanded families are having with their mortgage financing. NBC’s The … Continue reading →

Single-family Housing Starts eased lower last month, falling by 0.7 percent from May, or 3,000 units nationwide. A “housing start” is a home on which construction has started. June’s Housing Starts data is somewhat soft and may partially explain why … Continue reading →

Builder confidence in the housing market slipped this month, according to the National Association of Homebuilders’ monthly Housing Market Index. The Housing Market Index is actually a weighted composite of 3 separate surveys. One measures current single-family sales; one measures … Continue reading →

Mortgage markets improved for the 5th straight week last week as consumer confidence waned and inflation data tamed. Investors ignored the news that 19 of 23 reporting S&P 500 companies beat their respective earnings estimates and sold off on stocks. … Continue reading →