Economy

Weaker economic conditions, rising interest rates and expected changes in investment returns drove the reduced expectations, the Mortgage Bankers Association said.

Median expected growth in household income declined 1.3 percentage point to 3.3% in the January survey, the largest monthly drop in data going back almost ten years, the New York Fed found in a report released Monday.

Federal Home Loan banks aren't doing enough to address the shortage of affordable housing in the U.S., FHFA Director Sandra Thompson says. Some of their members are instead using advances to manage liquidity and perhaps engaging in crypto-related and other activities that put the Deposit Insurance Fund at risk, she says.

The central bank has raised rates aggressively for nearly a year, but experts believe the hiking cycle is nearly over.

Both Zillow and Black Knight Optimal Blue recorded significant increases, but the Freddie Mac survey only reported a 3-basis-point rise.

The Fannie Mae Home Purchase Sentiment Index rose for the third straight month, but concerns about affordability still weigh heavily on the minds of many Americans.

When adjusted for filings from companies in the past year, nonbank employment in the industry was even lower than initial estimates suggested.

Since breaking above 7% in November, the 30-year fixed is now down nearly a full percentage point, Freddie Mac said.

The group, led by Senate Banking Chairman Sen. Sherrod Brown, said nonperforming loans sold to single family housing rental businesses or private equity firms results in the displacement of homeowners.

Repo markets and the bank deposit business, in particular, would be upended if the U.S. were to default on its debt, experts say.

But several recent news developments are creating the perception that the risk of a recession is on the wane and that could end the downward pressure on rates.

The U.S. economy expanded at a healthy pace in the fourth quarter, though an extended salvo of Federal Reserve interest-rate hikes is seen jeopardizing growth prospects this year.

Foreclosure prevention actions overall fell for the sixth time in seven months in October, according to the FHFA.

The Federal Reserve's focus on what's happening in the labor market makes an economic downturn likely, but many watching the markets expect a policy easing in the second half of the year and growth following that.

Federal Reserve Bank of New York President John Williams said officials have not completed their aggressive tightening campaign to reduce stubborn price pressures.

Generally positive news about the U.S. economy helped push rates lower, but worries about Congressional infighting over the debt ceiling could reverse the trend, Freddie Mac and Zillow said.

But lower mortgage rates and better traffic have made homebuilders a bit more optimistic, the Mortgage Bankers Association said.

Gen Zers and millennials want to "test drive" potential long-term living arrangements and neighborhoods, Javelin Strategy and Research found in a recent survey.

High inflation, rising interest rates and increased economic uncertainty may be telegraphing a further slowdown in U.S. new household formation during the closing months of 2022.

The most extreme example of FOMC interest rate market manipulation in 2020 to 2021 has now created a huge potential risk for lenders and investors, writes the chairman of Whalen Global Advisors.