Home → Blog
Latest

Existing-home sales stall in April as tight supply pushes properties to record low time on the market

  • May 24, 2017
  • no comment
  • realestatelife

Sales of previously-owned homes sputtered in April after a supercharged first quarter, as lean inventory continued to constrain demand. Existing-home sales ran at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.57 million, the National Association of Realtors said Wednesday. That was a 2.3% decline from March’s selling pace, which was revised down a tick but still

READ MORE

Fed minutes show broad agreement on approach to start shrinking balance sheet

  • May 24, 2017
  • no comment
  • realestatelife

Federal Reserve officials were in broad agreement at their meeting on May 2-3 on a general approach to shrinking the bank’s massive balance sheet, according to minutes of the session released Wednesday. Nearly all Fed officials said they were content with a plan to end the reinvestment of principal of maturing securities – the main

READ MORE

New home sales tumble in April after soaring to 10-year high in March

  • May 23, 2017
  • no comment
  • realestatelife

Sales of newly-constructed homes stumbled in April, as builders retreated after a March surge that marked the strongest selling pace in a decade. New home sales ran at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 569,000. That was well below the consensus forecast of a 610,000 annual pace, but was offset by sharp upward revisions to

READ MORE

U.S. economy shows slightly faster pulse in May

  • May 23, 2017
  • no comment
  • realestatelife

A pair of surveys of American businesses in May shows the U.S. economy is still growing steadily, though manufacturers that provide many blue-collar jobs have cooled off in the past few months. IHS Markit said its manufacturing PMI slipped to 52.5 this month from 52.8, marking an eight-month low. Manufacturers saw a surge that began

READ MORE

Fed’s Kashkari says soft inflation readings are ‘concerning

  • May 23, 2017
  • no comment
  • realestatelife

Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari on Tuesday sounded in no hurry to raise short-term interest rates. Kashkari, who was the lone dovish dissenter against a March rate hike, told reporters recent soft inflation readings were “concerning” and said there still might be room to lower the unemployment rate without sparking price pressures

READ MORE

Treasury yields suffer largest weekly fall in a month, as stocks stage a rebound

  • May 20, 2017
  • no comment
  • realestatelife

For the week the US 10 year treasury finished at 2.243%, declining 8.8 basis points this week, marking its largest weekly decline since the period ended April 13. Bond prices move inversely to yields; one basis point is one hundredth of a percentage point.

READ MORE

Stock market set for showdown between bulls and bears

  • May 20, 2017
  • no comment
  • realestatelife

In a landscape devoid of blockbuster earnings and policy catalysts, the stock market is likely to remain vulnerable to political uncertainty, setting the stage for another round of skirmish between the bulls and the bears. This week’s turmoil was less about President Trump than what an embattled president will mean for the pro-business policies that

READ MORE

European Central Bank minutes show it is less likely to loosen policy, but cautious towards talk of tightening

  • May 18, 2017
  • no comment
  • realestatelife

Top economists at the European Central Bank (ECB) said they were becoming less likely to continue loose monetary policy, according to minutes from the latest monetary policy meeting. The minutes said the central bank was “less likely” to opt for “further accommodation” because of the strengthening of the European economy. The minutes also revealed the

READ MORE

Americans on unemployment rolls lowest since 1988

  • May 18, 2017
  • no comment
  • realestatelife

So-called continuing claims, or the number of people collecting jobless benefits, fell by 22,000 to 1.9 million in early May. That’s the lowest level in 29 years. initial jobless claims fell by 4,000 last week to 232,000. That’s the second lowest weekly reading during the current economic recovery that began almost eight years ago

READ MORE

Philly Fed index soars to 38.8 in May

  • May 18, 2017
  • no comment
  • realestatelife

That’s well above the economist forecast for a reading of 19.6. It marked the 10 month above zero on an index where any reading above zero indicates improving conditions. Gauges of news orders and shipments remained at high levels in May, according to the survey. The Philly Fed index is much stronger than the Empire

READ MORE