Dealers who respond to the FEA Weekly Order Survey have local, regional and in many instances national footprints. Overall, our survey participants continue to report that their sales to builders, contractors and remodelers remain steady.
News in end use
First-Time Home Buyer Activity Declined in Q2 2020
According to Genworth Mortgage Insurance (GMI), an operating segment of Genworth Financial, first-time home buyer activity decreased in the second quarter due to the pandemic, but overall it still remains active.
Single-Family Rent Prices Increase 1.7% in July, First Upward Movement Since Start of Pandemic
CoreLogic, the Irvine, California based corporation providing financial, property, and consumer information, analytics, and business intelligence has released their latest Single-Family Rent Index (SFRI) for July.
Mortgage Rates Move Slightly Higher for the Week Ending September 17th, 2020
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%.
Weekly Jobless Claims Decline for the Week Ending September 12th, 2020
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.
Single-Family Housing Starts and Permits Up Year-Over-Year in August
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.
New Home Mortgage Applications Up Year-Over-Year in August
The Mortgage Bankers Association Builder Application Survey (BAS) data for August reveals that mortgage applications, year-over-year increased 33.3%.
Canadian Home Sales and Prices Up in August
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.
Mortgage Applications Drop in Week Ending September, 11th 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.
Builders Confidence Hits All-Time Record High in September
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.