Erika Morphy of Globe St reports on the multifamily market, noting that the volume of multifamily loans that were at least 30 days past due or in nonaccrual status in the fourth quarter increased to $3.46 billion, up 43.1% from the previous quarter and an 81.2% increase year over year. Matt Tracy of Reuters reports on Fitch Ratings data showing that lending by banks to …
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Home Sales Spike
New data from the National Association of Realtors (NAR) revealed that home sales in February spiked. Sales of existing homes jumped 9.5% in February to 4.38 million units. Although sales were down 3.3% annually, it was the largest monthly gain since February 2023. The West and South regions saw the highest growth in sales, while sales in the …
White House Policy Proposals
Jeff Mason of Reuters reports on President Joe Biden’s recent comments on housing, noting that his proposed housing plan would require congressional approval, which might be difficult to achieve in an election year. The plan intends to give first-time homebuyers a $10,000 mortgage relief tax credit. Additionally, a $10,000 tax credit for those selling “starter” homes will free up housing …
Fed Meeting
As expected, the Federal Reserve held rates steady at its meeting last week, according to Jeff Cox of CNBC. After its two-day policy meeting, the Fed announced it would maintain its benchmark overnight borrowing rate of 5.25% to 5.5%. Additionally, Fed officials predicted three quarter-percentage point cuts by the end of 2024, which would be the first reductions since the …
Investor activity
Thomas Malone of CoreLogic reports on investor activity, noting that as home flippers and larger investors take a backseat, smaller investors show resilience. In July, August, and September, investors purchased 26.8%, 27.2%, and 28%, respectively, of the share of single-family homes. Given this, CoreLogic expects to see these numbers climb above 30% in the near future. Source: CoreLogic (December 2023) “Smaller …