In July, the ability of a family with a median income to afford to buy a home selling for the median price sank to its lowest since 1989, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR) housing affordability index.
Tag: U.S. economy
U.S. MORTGAGE INTEREST RATE HIGHEST IN 23 YEARS, APPLICATIONS CRASH
During the week ending 29 September, the average U.S. interest rate on a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage surpassed 7.5 percent for the time since November 2000, plunging applications for new and refinanced home loans to their fewest since 1996, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.
HIGHER INTEREST RATES CUT DOWN CONSUMER BORROWING
Americans reduced their outstanding non-revolving debt, such as auto and student loans, by $30.3 billion in August, according to U.S. Federal Reserve data. The figure represents a 9.8-percent reduction over the previous 12 months.
SPOTLIGHT: THE GREAT BOND ROUT OF ‘23
Since March 2020, government bonds with maturities of 10 years or more have dropped 46 percent in price, with the 30-year bond losing 53 percent, Yahoo Finance reported.
ECONOMIC UPDATE – MARKET OVERVIEW
In one of our Top Trends for 2023, we warned of a Middle East Meltdown. Since that time, as we have reported extensively and now it is right in front of everyone’s eyes, the Middle East is melting down.
SPOTLIGHT, TOP TREND 2023: OFFICE BUILDING BUST
Echoing Gerald Celente’s July 2020 forecast, Bloomberg’s Markets Live Pulse survey reports that a majority of 919 respondents believe that the market value of U.S. office buildings is due to crash.
U.S. HOUSING MARKET A “DISASTER”
The U.S. housing market has been “a slow-building disaster,” Glen Kelman, CEO of real estate website Redfin, said in a CNBC interview last week.
RALLY IN HOME CONSTRUCTION STALLS
Last spring’s boom in home construction has finally been stomped by high interest rates.
RISING INTEREST RATES SINK MORTGAGE MARKET
The highest mortgage interest rates in 23 years have sunk demand for new mortgage loans to their lowest in 27 years.
FED’S HIGH INTEREST RATES RIPPLE THROUGH THE ECONOMY
Americans shopping for car loans are finding those debts carry interest rates more than twice what they were two years ago. Those same high interest rates are pricing potential home buyers out of the market. (See “Rising Interest Rates Sink Mortgage Market” and “Rally in Home Construction Stalls” in this issue.)