Redfin is reporting that in the 4-week period ending on July 17, the typical home spent 19 days on the market. This is just one day longer than during the same period one year ago.
News in end use
Home Building Construction Times Increased Year-Over-Year in 2021
According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2021 Survey of Construction, with further analysis provided by the National Association of Home Builders, the average completion time of a single-family house in 2021 was approximately 8.2 months.
Fannie Mae’s Economic and Strategic Research Group Downgrades Expectations for GDP Growth in Full-Year 2022 and 2023
Fannie Mae’s Economic and Strategic Research (ESR) Group announced on Wednesday that they were downgrading their expectations for full-year 2022 and 2023 real GDP growth. The ESR indicated that softening consumer spending and downward revision to business inventory investment data amid record inflation and higher interest rates were the cause for the downgrade.
Amid Declining Softwood Lumber Prices, Canada’s Industrial Product Price Index & Raw Materials Price Index Are Trending Lower
Statistics Canada reported on Wednesday that the price of products manufactured in Canada as a measured by the Industrial Product Price Index (IPPI) declined by 1.1% month-over-month in June. This was the first monthly decline in the IPPI since August 2021, when it declined 0.3%.
US Leading Economic Index® Declined Further in June, The Conference Board Reports
The Conference Board released today the Leading Economic Index® (LEI) for the U.S. in June of 2022. According to the report, the LEI for the U.S. declined 0.8% in June, falling to a reading of 117.1 (2016=100). The decrease follows a 0.6% decline in May. The LEI is now down 1.8% over the first half of 2022.
Mortgage Rates Continued to Push Higher in Week Ending July 21, 2022
Freddie Mac has released its Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS) for the week ending July 21, 2022. The PMMS reports that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 5.54% with an average 0.8 point, up from last week when it averaged 5.51%.
Weekly Jobless Claims Continued to Trend Higher in the Week Ending July 16, 2022
The U.S. Department of Labor is reporting that an additional 251,000 Americans (seasonally adjusted) made their initial filing for unemployment benefits during the week ending on Saturday, July 16, 2022. This is an increase of 7,000 from the previous week’s unrevised level of 244,000.
Inflation Sends Canadian Consumer Price Index Up Month-Over-Month and Year-Over-Year in June
Statistics Canada reported on Wednesday that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) continues to rise. Driven by inflation, it rose 8.1% year-over-year in June, following a 7.7% increase in May. The June CPI increase was the largest year-over-year increase since January 1983.
Existing Homes Sales Decline Month-Over-Month and Year-Over-Year in June
The National Association of Realtors® reported on Wednesday that total existing home sales declined in three out of the four reporting regions in June. Sales were down by 5.4% from May to a seasonally adjusted rate of 5.12 million homes.
Mortgage Applications Drop in Week Ending July 15, 2022—Third Consecutive Decline
According to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Mortgage Application Survey, for the week ending July 15, 2022, the Market Composite Index (a measure of mortgage loan application volume) decreased 6.3% on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier.