Beige Book Reports Glut of Unsold Homes

A "glut" of unsold homes is putting downward pressure on prices and construction, while mortgage delinquencies have "increased significantly" in many areas, according to the Federal Reserve Board's Beige Book."Most districts pointed to further increase in inventory of available homes, with the earlier tightening of credit conditions for mortgage lending continuing to create barriers for some buyers," says the Fed's survey of economic conditions in the 12 Federal Reserve districts. The November survey also noted that local contacts generally don't expect a pickup in home construction until well into next year at the earliest. Meanwhile, "residential mortgage lending continued its downward slide," the Beige Book says.

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