News in end use

Redfin reported today that the median US asking rent rose 9% year-over-year in September to $2,002 per month, the slowest growth since August 2021 and the first single-digit increase in a year. September was the fourth consecutive month in which annual rent growth decelerated.

Freddie Mac has released its Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS) for the week ending October 13th. The PMMS reports that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.92% with an average 0.8 point, up from last week when it averaged 6.66%.

The US Department of Labor is reporting that, seasonally adjusted, an additional 228,000 Americans made their initial filing for unemployment benefits during the week ending on Saturday, October 8th. This is an increase of 9,000 from the previous week’s unrevised level of 219,000.

Fannie Mae’s Economic and Strategic Research (ESR) Group today released its October 2022 commentary. According to the ESR, the combination of high inflation, monetary policy tightening, and a slowing in the housing market is still projected to tip the economy into a modest recession in 2023Q1.

The Associated Builder and Contractors reported on Tuesday that its Construction Backlog Indicator increased to 9.0 months in September. This figure is based on a survey conducted between September 20th and October 5th. Year-over-year the reading is 1.4 months higher than in September 2021.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today that the Producer Price Index (PPI) for final demand, seasonally adjusted, increased 0.4% in September. On an unadjusted basis, final demand prices advanced 8.5% for the 12 months ending in September.

According to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Mortgage Application Survey, for the week ending October 7, the Market Composite Index (a measure of mortgage loan application volume) decreased 2.0% on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier.

An updated CoreLogic analysis amid Hurricane Ian recovery efforts estimates $41-70 billion in total flood/wind losses. The estimate includes wind loss, reevaluated insured and uninsured storm surge loss, and newly calculated inland flood loss for residential and commercial properties.

A closer look at the US Bureau of Labor Statistics total nonfarm payroll report for September, with a focus on construction employment, reveals that employment in the sector increased by 19,000 to a total of 7.7 million in September. Residential construction added 6,4000 jobs and employment currently is above its February 2020 level.

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Mortgage Credit Availability Index (MCAI), which analyzes data from the ICE Mortgage Technology, mortgage credit availability declined for the seventh consecutive month in September. The MCAI declined 5.4% to a reading of 102.5 in September.