News in end use

Freddie Mac has released its Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS) for the week ending September 17th, 2020. The PMMS shows that 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 2.87% with an average 0.8 point, up slightly from last week when it averaged 2.86%.

The U.S. Department of Labor is reporting that an additional 860,000 Americans made their initial filing for unemployment benefits during the week ending on Saturday September 12th.

The U.S. Census Bureau has reported that privately‐owned housing starts in August were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of 1,416,000. This is -5.1% below the revised July estimate of 1,492,000, but is 2.8% above the August 2019 rate.

The Mortgage Bankers Association Builder Application Survey (BAS) data for August reveals that mortgage applications, year-over-year increased 33.3%.

The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) is reporting that Canadian homes sale set another new all-time record high in August rising 6.2% above July 2020.

According to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Application Survey, for the week ending September 11th, 2020, the Market Composite Index decreased -2.5% on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier.

The latest National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) indicates that builder confidence in the market for newly-built single-family homes increased 5-points to a reading of 83 in September.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, total single-family permits issued for the first seven months of 2020, nationwide totaled 525,623.

Weyerhaeuser Company announced on Monday (9/14) that the company is making an immediate donation of $ 150,000 to the Red Cross to support emergency response efforts in communities affected by wildfire in the Pacific Northwest and particularly in Oregon.