What do experts say about the current mortgage market?
With mortgage rates ticking lower for the 4th consecutive week this past week, and home prices starting to cool off, will homes become more affordable? Yahoo Finance surveyed several industry experts, and their takeaway was that they were seeing rays of hope for frustrated home buyers.
Danielle Hale, the chief economist at Realtor.com, stated that “Labor cost data provided a ray of hope as it showed that hourly compensation was lower than previously reports in the second and third quarters for all sectors except manufacturing.” A softening labor market may be a sign that inflation has turned the corner in the US. This could mean that the Federal Reserve will slow its interest rate hikes, and home prices could cool even further.
What is the hottest housing market in the US?
Despite the housing market cooling off in several key metropolitan areas, there’s one location that is still high in demand for home buyers. Potential home buyers are still turning their attention to Florida according to a recent study from Redfin.
The study also revealed that 24.1% of people seeking to purchase a home are looking to move to a different metro than they currently live. Florida was often cited as a potential destination with half of the top 10 migration destinations on the list were metro areas in the Sunshine State.
What’s on the financial calendar for this week?
While inflation metrics and the Fed announcement on Wednesday will likely dominate the headlines this week, there are several key data points and speeches that may impact the mortgage market. Key dates for this week include:
Monday, December 12th
NY Fed 1-year & 5-year inflation expectations
Federal Budget
Tuesday, December 13th
Consumer Price Index
Core CPI, Core CPI year-on-year, CPI year-on-year, & CPI excluding shelter (3-month rolling annualized rate)
Wednesday, December 14th
Federal funds rate announcement
SEP median federal funds rate for end of 2023
Fed Chair Jerome Powell news conference
Thursday, December 15th
Initial jobless claims, continuing jobless claims
Retail sales reports
Philadelphia Fed manufacturing index
Friday, December 16th
S&P U.S. manufacturing & services PMI
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