“HUD’s New Directive: Final Rules for Ensuring Flood Risk Protection in Housing”

The goal of the Federal Flood Risk Management Standard (FFRMS) is to safeguard both households and government-funded projects from the threats of upcoming flooding occurrences. This standard exists to ensure future safety by mitigating potential risk of flood incidents.

“Unraveling the Impact of Fed Data on Housing Trends: Expert Insights”

In a recent discussion at The Gathering, three eminent panelists – Logan Mohtashami, Mike Simonsen, and Daryl Fairweather – shed light on the current scenario of the real estate market. They contributed valuable perspectives and shared in-depth analysis based on their extensive experience and proficiency in real estate.

“Preliminary Approval Granted to NAR Commission Lawsuit Settlement: A Detailed Overview”

Preliminary sanction has been conferred by Judge Stephen Bough on the commission lawsuit settlement agreement initiated by the National Association of Realtors (NAR). The case is scheduled to be further deliberated for final endorsement in an upcoming hearing in November.

“Exploring the Surge in Existing U.S. Home Sales Amid Pandemic Effects: A Deep Dive”

The real estate market experienced dynamic shifts in February and March. In February, there was a robust increase in the sales of existing homes, while new home sales marginally fell. However, the pattern altered in March as the sale of new homes escalated while existing home sales saw a reduction. This information was released through a combined report by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

The report highlighted that newly constructed homes were sold at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 693,000, a slight upward trend from 668,000 in February. Meanwhile, existing home sales plummeted from 4.38 million units to 4.19 million units. This spike in new home sales accounts for an 8.8% increase compared to February and stands 8.3% higher than in March 2023.

Sales including previously owned single-family homes, townhouses, condos, and cooperative apartments decreased by 4.3% and 3.7% relative to earlier periods. Particularly, sales of existing single-family homes dropped by 4.3% in March to a pace of 3.97 million units. Sales of condos and cooperative apartments were also down by 4.9% to 390,000 units. When compared to the previous year, single-family sales saw a dip of 2.8% while multi-family sales were down by 11.4%.

On the bright side, new home sales inflating by 10,000 from the 668,000 in February to 67,000 on non-seasonally adjusted figures exceeded expectations set by analysts at Trading Economics. They had projected new home sales to remain steady with a milder 2.2% decrease in existing home sales to 4.2 million units.

The inventory of new homes is promising, with 477,000 unsold homes, indicating an 8.3 month supply at the present rate of sales and a monthly growth rate of 5.7%. Old but currently available homes for sale grew by 4.7% to 1.11 million units. However, this remains low at a 3.2-month supply.

“Expansion of Executive Team at Mr. Cooper: A Detailed Overview”

Just one day prior to the unveiling of its first-quarter earnings report, the lending company welcomes onboard Ranjit Bhattacharjee and Kevin Barker. Their addition to the team has been met with anticipation in the lead-up to this important financial disclosure.

“Marching Ahead: A Comprehensive Analysis on the Rise of New Home Sales in March”

Despite market challenges, the appetite for real estate remains robust. The yearly pace of sales saw a rise of 8.8% since February, demonstrating unwavering interest in the sector.

“Understanding the Ups and Downs in New Home Sales: March 2024 Insights”

In February, the sales of newly-built houses saw minimal change. Approximately 662,000 homes, seasonally adjusted, were sold during this month, 0.3 percent or 2,000 units less than January’s figures. However, it did mark an increase of 5.9 percent in comparison to sales in February of the previous year. The U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development reported an estimated sale of 60,000 units in the month against 57,000 in the preceding month and 56,000 in February the year before, with no adjustment for seasonal factors. In the year to date, new home sales have seen a rise of 4.4 percent on a year-on-year basis, reaching 117,000 units. During this period, the average selling price hovered around $485,000, with the median price being $400,500. These figures were slightly lower than the previous February’s relative prices of $433,300 and $499,100. The month ended with an estimated inventory of 451,000 new homes for sale, indicating an 8.4-month supply at the current rate of sales, a figure consistent with the previous year’s. Robert Dietz, a National Association of Home Builders economist, pointed out that inventory of ready-made homes had grown by 23 percent year-on-year to 85,000 houses. Simultaneously, homes listed for sale but with construction not yet commenced rose by almost 18 percent from the prior year to 106,000. However, the number of houses available for sale but still under construction fell by 2 percent to 272,000.

“March 2022: A Deep Dive into the Trends and Insights of Existing Home Sales”

Contrary to projections of a slowdown following January, February saw a substantial rise in existing home sales, according to the National Association of Realtors® (NAR). Sales of pre-owned single-family houses, townhouses, condos, and co-op apartments reached a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.38 million units, marking a 9.5% jump from the prior month’s 4.0 million and the largest monthly rise since February 2023. However, this figure was still 3.3% lower than the 4.53 million units sold in February 2023.

Economists surveyed by Econoday had forecasted sales of 3.92 million units, while Trading Economics predicted a sales rate of 3.94 million. February saw single-family home sales reach a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.97 million, reflecting a 10.3% sequential rise but a 2.7% decline from the year prior. Sales of condos and co-op units were at 410,000 units, 2.5% higher than in January, yet 8.9% less than February 2023.

Simultaneously, there was an uptick in available homes for sale, growing by 5.9% since January and 10.3% from February 2023 to 1.07 million units. However, this is only a 2.9-month supply at the current rate of sales, well under what’s considered a balanced market of five to six-month supply.

Moreover, the median existing home price in February was at $384,500, indicating a 5.7% surge from the previous year’s $363,600. This marks the eighth consecutive month of year-over-year price increases and sets a record for the highest price for February. The median price for single homes stood at $388,700, up 5.6% compared to last year, whereas condo prices experienced a 6.7% yearly growth to a median of $344,000.

“Decoding the Recent Uptick in Residential Construction: A Closer Look”

The optimism among builders continues to surge for the fourth consecutive month as residential building statistics hint towards acceleration. There was an observable uptick in both housing initiations and construction permits in February, demonstrating gains over the January and February 2023 figures. According to data from the U.S. Census Bureau and HUD, new home construction launched at the seasonally adjusted pace of 1.521 million units in the said month. This represents a 10.7% increase from the 1.374 million units in January and a 5.9% rise from the same period last year. Single-family home constructions grew by 11.6% monthly to 1.129 million units and enjoyed a 35.2% year-over-year boost, while there was an 8.5% monthly rise in multifamily home starts. However, these were down by 35.9% annually. Unadjusted for seasonal influences, the month saw the start of 108,100 units, with single-family units making up 79,200 of these. The previous month recorded 97,400 units overall and 69,700 single-family homes. There was also a growth in permits, albeit more modestly. They reached a seasonally adjusted 1.518 million, up 1.9% from the 1.489 million in the previous month, and 2.4% more than the figure a year earlier. Single-family permits climbed by 1.0% to 1.031 million, which is 29.5% up from a year prior. Conversely, multifamily permits showed an upward adjustment of 2.4%, but were 32.8% down from the preceding February. In total, issued permits in the month were 118,300, rising from 114,800, with single-family permits going up from 75,900 to 79,300.

“Decoding the Future: Insights into Today’s Mortgage News and Trends”

As conference season revitalizes, there’s mounting concern around the survival of apple orchards due to the abundance of “applewood smoked” bacon in every buffet spread. A fresh perspective is being applied to everything, from Brussels sprouts to beets. At the L1 event in Los Angeles, I got wind of a book called, “Rethink Everything You Know About Being A Next Gen Loan Officer”. It’s the work of Kyle Draper and Brian Vieaux, in collaboration with 39 other industry heavyweights, offering advice to mortgage originators on cultivating their business marketing and relationships to appeal to a newer generation of homebuyers. A common sentiment echoing through the conference was the current disarray of Congress, focusing more on re-election than implementing impactful reforms. People in our sector need to contemplate the impact of any election on housing and our own business operations. On that note, consider the Mortgage Action Alliance as a platform for effecting change. This week’s podcast, sponsored by Richey May, a long-standing leader in providing specialized services to the mortgage industry, features an interview with Tyler House discussing the crucial role of data integrity in making informed business decisions. On a product note, Truv is offering lending and brokerage services, products, and software that can help lenders save 60-80 percent over competitors. Compass Mortgage, for example, reduced their verification costs by nearly 60 percent while maintaining their conversion rate, according to Justin Venhousen, COO of Compass Mortgage. Truv is also facilitating cost reductions by accelerating the verification process and delivering improved employment data. Don’t hemorrhage money unnecessarily, reach out to TRUV today for your income, employment, insurance, and asset verifications.