NAHB CEO on rising rates: Not overly concerned, keeping an eye on it

Posted About Nine Years Ago by NAHB

ECONOMIC NEWS

Fox Business

NAHB CEO on rising rates: Not overly concerned, keeping an eye on it

NAHB CEO Jerry Howard on the impact of rising interest rates on the housing market.

The Wall Street Journal

The housing market is riding high once again

The housing market is looking pretty hot right now, an important contributor to economic growth and the stock market. (Subscription may be required.)

HousingWire

These metros saw the most homebuilding activity in 2017

Homebuilding saw a pickup near the end of 2017 and is even expected to fuel the housing market in 2018 as it rises to a post-recession high.

Zillow

Owners of the most affordable homes gaining wealth fastest

Owners of the country's most affordable homes are gaining equity the fastest, because demand for entry-level homes continues to grow faster than supply.

National Mortgage News

12 housing markets where saving for a 20% down payment takes the longest

With rising house prices largely driven by the inventory shortage, the time it takes a potential homebuyer to save for a 20% down payment is only likely to increase going forward.

The New York Times

America at home: Grandparents in the attic, children in the basement

On a Sunday evening a few weeks back, Shobana Ram was loading the dishwasher in her kitchen in Queens when her 85-year-old father-in-law rose from the dinner table, carrying his cane in one hand and an empty plate in the other.

CNBC

Weekly mortgage applications tank even more, as rising rates make homes less affordable

The numbers are getting uglier for potential homebuyers and homeowners looking to save money.

Denver Business Journal

Denver's tops in the country for sparse inventory of houses for sale

The Home Depo on Tuesday reported earnings that were buoyed by a booming housing market and strong economy, a macro environment that executives and analysts believe is likely to provide a tailwind for the company for some time.

Homebuilders shrug off higher mortgage rates, stay optimistic on economic boost from tax cuts

Posted About Nine Years Ago by NAHB

ECONOMIC NEWS

CNBC

Homebuilders shrug off higher mortgage rates, stay optimistic on economic boost from tax cuts

Tax cuts are still making homebuilders feel better, even as mortgage rates rise to the highest level in more than four years.

MarketWatch

Housing starts soar in January, building permits hit 10 1/2-year high

Construction on new homes in the U.S., known as housing starts, jumped almost 10% in January to an annual rate of 1.33 million. That's the second highest level since the Great Recession and it easily exceeded the 1.24 million forecast of economists polled by MarketWatch.

HousingWire

Nearly two-thirds of U.S. housing markets see home prices hit all-time high

As housing inventory sank to its all-time low during the fourth quarter, home prices increased, creating all-new highs in many U.S. markets, according to the latest quarterly report from the National Association of Realtors.

The Washington Post

The overall U.S. housing market has recovered. But that's not true in every community.

Now that a decade has passed since the housing market collapsed and home prices have steadily risen on a national basis, Zillow's researchers found that the housing market has regained all of the $9 trillion lost in home value during the recession.

CNBC

Shopping for a home? It will take a lot longer than you think because home prices are overheating

Homes today are selling in about 40 days on average, almost two weeks faster than a year ago. But it is taking a lot longer for shoppers to find a home to buy.

Realtor.com

Who ordered all the McMansions? 10 cities where they're piled highest

You know them when you see them. The imposing, ostentatious structures looming over surprisingly wee plots of land. The crazily mismatched architectural styles. The hipped roofs, gabled roofs, and pyramidal roofs—all on the same house! The bank columns. The front yard Romanesque fountains. The puzzling profusion of window sizes and types. The gigantic, two-story front doors.

CNBC

Here's how a 5% mortgage rate would roil the US housing market

Mortgage rates are now at their highest level in four years and poised to move even higher. The timing couldn't be worse, as the usually busy spring housing market kicked into gear early this year amid higher home prices and strong competition for a record low supply of homes for sale.

USA Today

U.S. mortgage rates climb to a nearly 4-year peak

Long-term U.S. mortgage rates jumped this week to their highest level in nearly four years, a sign that the prospect of higher inflation is steadily increasing the cost of borrowing to buy a home.

Fox News (AP)

NIMBY vs. YIMBY: Housing battle brews in booming Seattle

Seattle's booming tech industry has brought a massive influx of new residents with big wallets to the city. But an ensuing housing crunch has led to skyrocketing rents and home prices that have strained middle- and working-class families and deepened the city's crisis of homelessness.

The Wall Street Journal

The new tax law: How will the tax overhaul affect the economy?

President Donald Trump and Republicans are betting the 2017 tax overhaul will invigorate the U.S. economy after a long but slow expansion, putting controversial economic theories about growth to a crucial test. (Subscription may be required.)

HOUSING FINANCE NEWS

National Mortgage News

Has GSE reform hit the skids?

Despite a legislative push by some senators and other stakeholders to jump-start housing finance reform, efforts to form consensus over a bill once again are stuck in neutral. (Subscription may be required.)

The Wall Street Journal

Another plea from Fannie Mae

Fannie Mae is again going hat in hand to taxpayers after announcing a $6.5 billion quarterly loss on Wednesday. Washington should take this news as a kick in the keister to finally start winding down the mortgage giant and its busted brother, Freddie Mac . But the Trump Administration seems to be moving in the opposite direction. (Subscription may be required.)

Bloomberg

Fannie and Freddie mortgages face higher fees under Trump budget

The Trump Administration has said it wants to get Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac out of government control, but in the meantime it's not being shy about seeking to use revenue from the U.S.-backed mortgage guarantors to reduce the deficit.

MarketWatch

Fannie Mae to turn to taxpayers after $6.5 billion loss

Mortgage finance provider Fannie Mae on Wednesday reported a fourth quarter net loss of $6.5 billion, a step that means it will draw billions from the U.S. Treasury.

HousingWire

Mortgage Choice Act approved by House of Representatives

The House of Representatives voted Thursday to pass the Mortgage Choice Act of 2017, which would adjust the Truth in Lending Act's definitions of points and fees under the Ability to Repay/Qualified Mortgage rule.

TAX REFORM

Marketplace

Low-income and middle-class homeowners might see their tax refunds shrink come 2018

The budget plan passed in the wee hours of the night on Friday not only put a quick end to the second shutdown of 2018 but also temporarily breathed life into several expired tax deductions. Under the plan many of these tax breaks were only extended retroactively for 2017. As such, their future remains uncertain.

Arizona Republic

How tax-reform changes will affect homeowners and those considering buying

The nation's homeownership rate recently rose on an annual basis for the first time in what seems like forever — the first gain since 2004.

MULTIFAMILY

CNBC

Major apartment developer: 'There is an acute crisis headed our way'

Scan the downtowns of the nation's largest cities, and you are likely to see a staggering array of cranes.

HUD

NPR

White House budget calls for deep cuts to HUD

those who receive public housing subsidies and slashes funding for the Department of Housing and Urban Development by $8.8 billion.

INCLUSIONARY ZONING

The Wall Street Journal

The high cost of 'affordable housing' mandates

As housing prices recover from the Great Recession, municipalities across America are considering laws that will raise the cost of homeownership. The Wall Street Journal reports that cities like Philadelphia, Detroit and Atlanta are requiring developers to set aside some portion of their new units to sell or rent at below-market prices to low-income households. Like many progressive promises, this is a fool's errand. These laws will reduce the cost of housing for targeted political groups if they increase the cost of housing for everyone else. (Subscription may be required.)

Home price gains picked up steam at year-end, CoreLogic says

Posted About Nine Years Ago by NAHB

ECONOMIC NEWS

MarketWatch

Home price gains picked up steam at year-end, CoreLogic says

Forget the rent - home purchase prices may soon be "too damn high." Nationally, prices rose 6.6% for the 12 months ending in December, real-estate data provider CoreLogic said Tuesday. That marked the fourth month in a row in which annual increases were higher than in the prior month.

USA Today

10 states predicted to have strong housing markets in 2018

The housing market in the U.S. has experienced a major uptick over the past two years. In 2016, existing home sales were the strongest they've been since 2006. More than a decade after the worst housing crisis in U.S. history, it seems we're finally in a sustainable recovery period.

MarketWatch

Homeownership rate reaches three-year high as rebound from crisis gathers pace

More Americans became homeowners in the final three months of last year, fresh evidence that homeownership is rebounding after touching a post-crisis low.

National Mortgage News

12 high-rent housing markets ready for more first time home buyers

Rising rents could suggest the homebuyer pool is about to get even bigger at a time when demand in the housing market is already far outpacing supply.

The Washington Post

In many parts of the country, the bar for what's considered a luxury home has risen

While owning a house valued at $1 million or more still means you're well-to-do, the definition of the luxury home market has been creeping upward along with home prices.

The Washington Post

Predictions of a crash in housing prices have not come true

Were fears overblown that changes to the federal tax law would trigger plunging home values?

CNBC

Mortgage volume stalls as rates rise to the highest level in four years

The first week in February usually marks the start of the busy spring housing market, but you wouldn't know that from the mortgage market.

MarketWatch

Mortgage rates hit 14-month high as bonds sell off

Rates for home loans rose to the highest in more than a year, raising the prospect of a fresh headwind for housing that mortgage professionals think the market can handle — for now.

MarketWatch

Will stock market volatility affect house prices?

As the stock market's correction dredged up memories of 2007, some have begun to look for the bubble that might burst into the next recession. But housing experts say that real estate is unlikely to be the culprit this time around.

Houston Chronicle

Houston builders to add 28,000 homes this year

Houston-area builders will start construction on more homes this year, but labor shortages, increased material costs and rising mortgage rates could present challenges to the industry, according to a new forecast.

The New York Times

Powell becoming Fed Chief as economy starts to show strain

Jerome H. Powell, who will be sworn in Monday as the Federal Reserve's 16th chairman, is stepping into his new role as a half-decade of economic tranquillity is beginning to show some signs of strain.

HOUSING FINANCE NEWS

PRODUCT NEWS

BDX

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Thousands of custom & production builders across the US list their homes with BDX to connect with home shoppers, drive website traffic, and generate quality leads. Join them with prime placement on the leading new home marketplace, NewHomeSource.com and Realtor.com plus hundreds of other websites. Get started today!

Professional Warranty Service Corporation

The 2018 Home Building Forecast: Is It the Tortoise or the Hare?

Should we feel good about the prospects for housing in the coming year considering the positive signs we are seeing? The answer, according to PWSC's President, Gale F. Sommers is... yes, but cautiously. Here's why.

AFFORDABLE HOUSING

The New York Times

The affordable housing crisis is about to get worse

Many of the worst effects of the tax bill President Trump signed in December could take years to emerge. But the damage to the federal tax credit program that finances nearly all affordable housing built in America is already painfully evident. Unless Congress rescues this crucial program, a quarter million fewer affordable units will be built over the next 10 years, deepening an already serious crisis.

MULTIFAMILY

The Wall Street Journal

Rent controls, a bane of landlords, are gaining support as costs soar

Calls for rent-control legislation are growing across the U.S. as apartment tenants endure sharply rising rents and memories fade of the downsides of price caps. (Subscription may be required.)

LOW-INCOME HOUSING TAX CREDIT

HousingWire

Fannie Mae to invest in $100 million in low-income housing tax credit

Fannie Mae announced Monday it will invest in $100 million to help Hurricane Harvey impacted areas and underserved markets.

NATIONAL FLOOD INSURANCE PROGRAM

Asbury Park Press

Flood insurance reform: Jersey Shore to pay more in the future

Likely changes to the National Flood Insurance Program are poised to raise costs for many Shore homeowners, perhaps substantially.

TRENDS

Bloomberg

A driverless future threatens the laws of real estate

The link between property and transport has been perhaps the most durable in human history.

Construction spending climbs, hits record high in December

Posted About Nine Years Ago by NAHB

ECONOMIC NEWS

Fox Business

Construction spending climbs, hits record high in December

National Association of Home Builders CEO Jerry Howard reacts to record-high construction spending, explaining why he thinks housing demand is going to start increasing as well.

MarketWatch

Homeownership rate reaches three-year high as rebound from crisis gathers pace

More Americans became homeowners in the final three months of last year, fresh evidence that homeownership is rebounding after touching a post-crisis low.

MarketWatch

Home prices accelerated in November, Case-Shiller shows

The numbers: The S&P/Case-Shiller 20-city index rose a seasonally adjusted 0.7% in the three-month period ending in November compared to the same period ending in October, and was up 6.4% compared to a year before. The national index rose a seasonally adjusted 0.7% for the month, and 6.2% for the year.

MarketWatch

Pending home sales inch higher as tight inventory stifles housing market

U.S. pending home sales rose 0.5% in December, the National Association of Realtors said Wednesday. That's the highest reading since March, even though the index stands just 0.5% higher than a year ago.

Forbes

2018's housing market looks good unless you're a first-time millennial buyer

The Nation's housing market for 2018 continues to look good according to two recently released reports. Though, first-time Millennial buyers will continue to struggle with affordability especially in high priced areas like Los Angeles, San Francisco, Boston, New York and Washington DC.

MarketWatch

Mortgage rates advance for fourth straight week

Mortgage rates advanced for the fourth straight week, as the market begins to price in a more aggressive Federal Reserve and burgeoning inflation pressures.

The Wall Street Journal

My 10-year odyssey through the housing crisis

After looking at several houses along Alabama's Gulf Coast, we decided the sunny cottage on Audubon Drive in Foley was the one—so long as the seller came down a little on the price. (Subscription may be required.)

MarketWatch

Fed to take a step toward a March interest-rate hike

The Federal Reserve will make subtle, hawkish, changes to its statement this week to confirm what the market now expects: a rate hike is coming in March.

HOUSING FINANCE NEWS

Scotsman Guide

GSE bill would expand competition and Ginnie Mae

A housing-finance reform bill now pending in the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, & Urban Affairs proposes to create a system where multiple entities are allowed to compete against each other to purchase and securitize mortgages, according to a draft of the bill leaked to the media this week.

Washington Examiner

Civil rights, affordable housing groups bash bipartisan Fannie, Freddie reform bill

Civil rights and affordable housing groups are criticizing a draft bipartisan bill to overhaul the housing finance system and revamp Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, a development that could cement liberal opposition to the legislative effort.

TRENDS

The Wall Street Journal

Say goodbye to garages as developers imagine a driverless future

Mass adoption of driverless cars is still years away, but architects, developers and planners already are designing new projects with autonomous vehicles in mind. (Subscription may be required.)

The Washington Post

A good night's sleep can be a key feature in your dream home

Sending midnight emails from the comfort of bed used to be the ultimate status symbol. Now, science and society are tending to agree that it's the ultimate drag.

WOTUS

The New York Times

EPA blocks Obama-era clean water rule

The Trump administration has formally suspended a major Obama-era clean water regulation ahead of plans to issue its own version of the rule later this year.

MULTIFAMILY

Forbes

Three reasons multifamily developers should focus on baby boomer renters

For the past few years, the importance of appealing to millennial renters has dominated the conversation. But, based on recent trends, the industry should really start honing their focus on baby boomers. From being the fastest-growing tenant profile to experiencing less rent burden to staying in one place for longer than other demographics, baby boomers are the ideal tenant in today's luxury multifamily space.

TAX REFORM

The New York Times

Tucked into the tax bill, a plan to help distressed America

A little-noticed section in the $1.5 trillion tax cut that President Trump signed into law late last month is drawing attention from venture capitalists, state government officials and mayors across America.

Housing Headlines Archives for 2018-02

NAHB CEO on rising rates: Not overly concerned, keeping an eye on it

Homebuilders shrug off higher mortgage rates, stay optimistic on economic boost from tax cuts

Home price gains picked up steam at year-end, CoreLogic says

Construction spending climbs, hits record high in December

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