Freddie Mac has released its Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS) for the week ending August 11, 2022. The PMMS reports that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 5.22% with an average 0.7 point, down from last week when it averaged 4.99%. A year ago at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 2.87%.
Wood Markets News
Weekly Jobless Claims Increase in the Week Ending August 6, 2022
The US Department of Labor is reporting that an additional 262,000 Americans (seasonally adjusted) made their initial filing for unemployment benefits during the week ending on Saturday, August 6. This is an increase of 14,000 from the previous week’s revised lower level of 248,000. The 4-week moving average was 252,000.
West Fraser Announces Permanent Production Curtailments at Fraser Lake and Williams Lake Sawmills and Quesnel Plywood Mill
West Fraser Timber announced on Tuesday that it is permanently curtailing approximately 170 million board of combined production at its Fraser Lake and Williams Lake sawmill facilities and approximately 85 million square feet of plywood production at its Quesnel Plywood mill.
BC Government Supports ‘Na̱mg̱is First Nation Chip Facility That Will Supply Pulp & Paper Industry
Over the past 3-years, the BC government has provided a $149,500 (CAD) to Atli Resources Limited Partnership (Atli Resources LP), which is the forestry arm of the ‘Na̱mg̱is First Nation. The funds were awarded through FP Innovations, a delivery agent for the Indigenous Forest Bioeconomy Program and the Indigenous Forestry Program.
Houses Are Taking Longer to Sell as US Housing Market Cools
Redfin reported on Tuesday that the share of US homes that were listed for 30 days or more without going under contract increased by 12.5% year-over-year in July. Or, 61.2% of for-sale homes were on the market for at least 30 days, up from 54.4% in July of 2021.
Mortgage Applications Rise in the Week Ending August 5, 2022—Second Consecutive Increase
According to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Mortgage Application Survey, for the week ending August 5, the Market Composite Index increased 0.2% on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier.
Consumer Price Index Unchanged Month-Over-Month and Up 8.5% Year-Over-Year in July 2022
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Wednesday that the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) was unchanged in July, on a seasonally adjusted basis. This follows a 1.3% rise in June.
New-Single Family Home Starts in 2021 at Fastest Pace Since 2013
According to data released in the Survey of Construction, new single-family starts expanded at a precipitous pace in 2021. Nationwide, 1,133,145 new single-family units were started in 2021. That is 14% higher than those started in 2020. It is the fastest growth pace since 2013 and the highest count since the Great Recession.
Proposed Douglas-fir National Monument Once Again Up for Discussion
The proposed Douglas-fir National Monument is once again up for discussion, after lying dormant during the Trump administration. The monument would sit mostly on the Willamette National Forest in the Cascade foothills.
Mortgage Credit Availability Declines for Fifth Consecutive Month in July, Reaching Its Lowest Level Since May 2013
According to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Mortgage Credit Availability Index (MCAI) report mortgage credit availability declined for the fifth consecutive month in July. The MCAI dropped 9.0% to a reading of 108.8.