Housing markets

Despite the improvement in sentiment, the homebuilder index remains below end-of-2021 levels, when mortgage rates were lower

The nearly 8% growth on a seasonally adjusted annualized basis is well above the historical average, according to the government-sponsored enterprise.

Even though the price of softwood lumber has climbed up by more than 7% in the last three months, it sits 21% below its level from a year ago.

The chattel financing firm's cash infusion is in addition to a $15.5 million venture round in 2022 and a Series A earlier this year.

Mayor Michelle Wu is offering hefty tax breaks to companies to turn offices into housing, the latest example of a city seeking to address the challenges of remote work hitting downtowns and a lack of affordable residences.

Democratic senators including Banking Chair Sherrod Brown and Elizabeth Warren want to restrict tax breaks for large corporate investors that buy local homes and often drive up costs.

Ten Western states that benefited from a pandemic-driven boom reported value declines in May, CoreLogic said.

Construction is heating up, but just 40% of new units are single-family residential properties, the firm's data analytics arm said.

Fannie Mae's Home Purchase Sentiment Index recorded a little more optimism in July.

With new home listings down 25% since last year, bidding wars have become the norm, according to the brokerage.

There's quite a bit of inventory out there that would have otherwise been returned to the market but for unduly harsh political theater writes the CEO of the National REO Brokers Association.

Measures commonly used may not fully account for regional variations like those seen recently, a working paper by Federal Housing Finance Agency staff finds.

The latest quarterly increase in revenue comes as other reports show home values heading upward and affordability declining.

Those living in San Francisco and New York want to switch cities in higher proportions than ever before, the brokerage and search platform found.

More than one-third of average wages is now needed for borrowers to make regular payments on the typical home, according to Attom. Meanwhile, the Mortgage Bankers Association found monthly costs rose 14% annually.

The National Association of Realtors' index of contract signings to purchase previously owned homes dropped 2.7% to 76.5 last month, according to data released Thursday.

But the annual rate of change turned negative for the first time in 11 years, according to the Case-Shiller index.

However, as it currently stands, most measures suggest "the market does not have a path to close the housing deficit in the near-term," Citigroup said. 

Researchers at the government-sponsored enterprise also maintained their outlook for a modest recession but moved anticipated onset to the fourth quarter this year.

The first and fourth-largest home insurers in the Golden State won't issue new policies because of rising construction costs and exposure to catastrophes.