US Housing Market Update Homeownership rate has finally found a floor Our call over two years ago that the homeownership rate would see further declines has proved broadly correct. But with foreclosures now back to historical norms, and credit conditions gradually... 19th November 2015 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Update Easing credit conditions are beginning to boost FTB numbers Lenders have accelerated the easing of mortgage lending standards in recent months, thanks to a steady reduction in mortgage delinquencies and new GSE policies. That has started to boost the number of... 16th October 2015 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Update How tight are conditions in the rental market? On the basis of past form, the fact the rental vacancy rate has hit a 30-year low would suggest rental growth is set to surge. But the drop in the vacancy rate is being exaggerated by a rise in the... 13th October 2015 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Update Fannie Mae launches new housing sentiment indicator The new Home Purchase Sentiment Index from Fannie Mae has a good track record in forecasting measures of housing market activity. While future performance may not be as impressive, the drop in... 18th September 2015 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Update Why are home purchase mortgage applications so subdued? The first quarter’s recovery in mortgage applications for home purchase appears to have been derailed by a lack of earnings growth and the resulting deterioration in affordability. While earnings... 10th September 2015 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Update Could prospect of a rate rise boost activity in the short term? The housing market is well placed to cope with a gradual rise in interest rates. Indeed, there is some evidence that a gentle rise in rates can spur some potential buyers to get into the market before... 28th August 2015 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Update Looser credit conditions will support mortgage recovery Most evidence suggests that credit conditions are loosening, albeit very gradually. As it becomes clearer that the housing and wider economic recoveries are strong enough to cope with a gradual rise... 29th July 2015 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Update Labour shortages won’t derail homebuilding recovery Recent survey data suggest that the recovery in housing starts would have been stronger if not for shortages of labour within some specialised trades. But although a scarcity of labour may be... 14th July 2015 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Update Have D.C. home prices hit a wall? Negative house price growth in D.C. in the first quarter is a worrying development given that the economy has underperformed and housing looks highly overvalued. This doesn’t necessarily signal the... 11th June 2015 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Update What’s holding first-time buyers back? There is no evidence to suggest that homeownership aspirations amongst young households have diminished in recent years. And some of the cyclical factors holding back demand have also eased sharply... 11th May 2015 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Update Are labour shortages still holding back homebuilding? Anecdotal evidence suggests that labour shortages continue to hold back homebuilding. However, there are few signs in the macroeconomic data of a widespread problem. Instead, we expect stronger... 18th March 2015 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Update Is household formation set for a rebound? A fall in the share of young adults living with their parents should provide a boost to household formation over the next few years. This is an upside risk to our forecasts for sales and housing... 12th March 2015 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Update Next refinancing boom won’t be as big as the last The recent decline in mortgage interest rates will trigger a refinancing boom that will span the first half of 2015. But it will be more modest than the one in 2012, and the benefits in terms of lower... 29th January 2015 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Update What next for mortgage interest rates? The decline in long-term Treasury yields almost certainly means that 30-year mortgage interest rates have further to fall and that any subsequent rises will be more gradual than we previously... 20th January 2015 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Update How will lower oil prices affect housing? If production and employment are scaled back, housing markets in some oil-producing States, which have recently been among the most buoyant, could potentially suffer. But any drag that this may... 12th January 2015 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Update How good is the outlook for residential rents? Over the past three years the surge in average house prices has dwarfed the rise in rents. However, over the next few years, those patterns look set to go into reverse, with rents likely to rise at an... 11th December 2014 · 1 min read
