Recent Updates
- Turkey: Non-Domestic PPI, House Sales (Mar), Consumer Confidence Index (Apr); Morocco: CPI (Mar)
- Spain: Trade in Constant Prices (Feb)
- Denmark: Consumer Confidence (Apr); Iceland: HICP (Mar) Norway: Business Tendency Survey (Q1)
- Greece: BOP (Feb)
- Germany: Federal Budget, PPI (Mar)
- Estonia: PPI (Mar), Construction Cost Index (Jan-Mar) Kazakhstan: Balance Sheet of Second-Tier Banks (Mar);Tajikistan:
- more updates...
Economy in Brief
Philadelphia Fed Factory Conditions Improve; Prices Jump
The Philadelphia Fed reported that its General Factory Sector Business Conditions Index rose to 23.2 during April...
U.S. Initial Claims for Unemployment Insurance Are Little Changed
Initial unemployment insurance claims slipped to 232,000 (-6.1% y/y) during the week ended April 14...
U.K. Retail Sales Fall
U.K. GDP is expected to cool its jets when the first quarter GDP number is released...
U.S. Mortgage Loan Applications Rebound; Interest Rates Steady
The MBA total Mortgage Applications Volume Index increased 4.9% last week (1.0% y/y), ...
Japan’s Trade Surplus Returns Even As Trade Flows Slow
While the IMF has just lifted its outlook for growth in 2018, Japan is logging weaker and weaker export and import growth as the year progresses...
by Tom Moeller July 10, 2015
The National Association of Realtors Composite Index of Home Affordability declined 3.7% during May to 159.7 (-0.9% y/y), down for the fourth consecutive month. The decline was driven by a 4.7% rise in home prices which have increased 8.6% during the last twelve months. During the last ten years there has been a 69% correlation between the affordability index level and new plus existing single-family home sales.
The rise in home prices offset a dip in mortgage interest rates to 3.9%, the lowest level since June 2013. As a result, principal plus interest payments amounted to $869 per month, up 3.1% y/y. This increase outpaced the 2.1% y/y rise in medium family incomes. Mortgage payments as a percent of income rose to the highest level (15.7%) in nine months.
The Housing Affordability Index equals 100 when median family income qualifies for an 80% mortgage on a median priced existing single-family home. A rising index indicates more buyers can afford to enter the home-buying market. Data on Home Affordability can be found in Haver's REALTOR database. Interest rate data can be found in the WEEKLY and DAILY databases.
Recent Developments and the Outlook for the Economy is the title of today's speech by Fed Chair Janet L. Yellen and it can be found here.
Housing Affordability | May | Apr | Mar | May Y/Y | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Composite Index | 159.7 | 165.9 | 171.6 | -0.9% | 166.3 | 179.6 | 198.8 |
Median Sales Price (Existing Single Fam. Home) | $230,300 | $220,000 | $212,100 | 8.6% | $207,125 | $195,933 | $175,783 |
Monthly Mortgage Rate | 3.90% | 3.95% | 3.95% | 4.34% | 4.30% | 4.00% | 3.83% |
Principal and Interest Payment | $869 | $835 | $805 | 3.1% | $820 | $750 | $657 |
Median Family Income | 66,608 | $66,483 | $66,311 | 2.1% | $65,321 | $64,030 | $62,531 |
Payment as a Percent of Income | 15.7 | 15.1 | 14.6 | 15.5 | 15.1 | 14.0 | 12.6 |