The U.S. Census Bureau is reporting that Privately-owned housing starts in June were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,186,000. This is 17.3% above the revised May estimate of 1,011,000, but is -4.0% below the June 2019 rate of 1,235,000.
Wood Markets News
FEA’s Weekly Order Survey – Dealers Remain Optimistic About Near-Term and Future Sales
Dealers responding to this week’s Weekly Order Survey, continue to report that they remain very optimistic about both their near-term and future sales.
Remodeling Market Remains Upbeat in Second Quarter Aided in Part by COVID-19 Pandemic
The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) Remodeling Market Index (RMI) for the second quarter of 2020, posted a reading of 73. An indication that more remodelers view conditions as good, rather than poor.
Early Stage Mortgage Delinquencies Reach Highest Level in 21 years, in April
According to a report from CoreLogic®, an Irvine, California, based provider of consumer, financial and property data and analytics to businesses and government, in April 2020, 6.1% of all U.S. mortgages were delinquent by at least 30 days or more.
Mortgage Rates Fall Below 3%, Hitting a 50-Year Low, in the Week Ending July 16th
Freddie Mac has released its Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS) for the week ending July 16th, 2020.
Canadian Home Sales and Listings Rebound in June
The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) is reporting that both Canadian home sales and listing rebounded in June 2020.
Builder Confidence Back to Pre-COVID-19 Levels in July
According to the latest National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) / Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) builder confidence in the market for newly-built single-family homes jumped 14 points to 72 in July.
Weekly Jobless Claims Inch Lower in the Week Ending July 11th
The U.S. Department of Labor is reporting that an additional 1.3 million Americans made their initial filing for unemployment benefits during the week ending on Saturday July 11th.
U.S. Softwood Lumber Production Increases in January and February While Canadian Production Declines
The latest issue of the Western Wood Products Association’s monthly Lumber Track reports that for the first two months of 2020, U.S. lumber production volume increased by 5%, when compared to the first two months of 2019.
Strong Housing Rebound Underway but Experts Say There Are Risks
Fannie Mae’s Economic and Strategic Research (ESR) Group is pointing to the reopening of the economy in several states from the COVID-19 pandemic shutdowns, as a reason for their raising their estimates for the 2020 full year GDP from the current -5.4% decline it predicted in June to a -4.2% downturn in July.