US Housing Market Data Response Housing Starts (Jan. 14) The sharp fall in housing starts in January looks like further payback following November’s surge, combined with weather-related disruption. So while 2014 has got off to an unpromising beginning, we... 19th February 2014 · 1 min read
Canada Economics Weekly Housing starts likely to fall further this year Although housing starts have declined over the past two years, the current six-month annualised trend of 191,456 units is arguably still above demographic requirements. With weakening home sales and... 17th February 2014 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Update What measure of earnings should be compared to house prices? If the share of homes bought using the joint income of a two-earner household has trended up over time, it is possible that a measure of the house price-to earnings ratio that uses average individual... 17th February 2014 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Update Will mortgage demand recover this year? Mortgage demand is struggling to shake off the impact of last year’s jump in mortgage interest rates. But providing that the wider economic and labour market recovery remain on track, we see no reason... 14th February 2014 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Chart Pack Pending home sales tumble again The recovery in housing market activity has taken a knock. Existing home sales edged up in December, but the pending home sales index recorded a worrying slump. New home sales fell substantially in... 13th February 2014 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Data Response RICS Residential Market Survey (Jan. 13) The January RICS survey provides some tentative evidence that housing market activity is no longer accelerating. But with housing market conditions still very tight, house prices will see further... 13th February 2014 · 1 min read
Canada Data Response Teranet-National Bank House Prices (Jan.) January's pick-up in house price inflation isn't that surprising when you consider last year's home buying rush that was triggered by fears of rising mortgage rates. Now that home sales are dropping... 12th February 2014 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Data Response CML Lending Trends (2013 Q4) Data from the CML confirm that first-time buyers have been the driving force behind the recovery in mortgage lending. But buy-to-let lending is also making a steady comeback, with the number of loans... 12th February 2014 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Chart Pack A further rise in housing market activity and house prices Housing market activity and prices are continuing to rise, although there is some tentative evidence that the pace of those gains is now moderating. And with more homes expected to be put on the... 6th February 2014 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Data Response Halifax House Prices (Jan.14) The Halifax reported a large rise in house prices of 1.1% in January, more than reversing a slight fall in December. But there is no sign that house price gains are accelerating, which would typically... 6th February 2014 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Data Response Mortgage Applications (Jan.14) The rise in mortgage applications for home purchase in January means that applications have repeated the pattern of falling in one month and rising in the next for six months now. The outlook for home... 5th February 2014 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Update Is the growing market share of ARMs cause for concern? The growing take up of adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) does not look like a long-term threat to the stability of the housing market. Even after recent gains, the size of the ARM market is small. And... 4th February 2014 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Data Response CoreLogic House Prices (Dec.13) The final CoreLogic house price reading of 2013 showed that house prices rose by 11% last year. But the year-on-year rate of gains softened in the closing months of the year and is likely to weaken... 4th February 2014 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Data Response Homeownership and Vacancy Rates (Q4 13) The slight decline in the homeownership rate at the end of last year is a reminder that, even though the housing market is recovering, the share of the population who own their home probably has... 31st January 2014 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Data Response Mortgage Lending (Dec.13) Mortgage approvals rose in December according to the Bank of England, although the increase was relatively small. Mortgage lending will see further gains as the economy recovers, but there are few... 30th January 2014 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Data Response Land Registry Repeat Sales Index (Dec.13) The Land Registry reported that house prices ended the year on a strong note, with December seeing the strongest month-on-month gain since July. Nearly all regions saw a rise in prices over 2013, but... 29th January 2014 · 1 min read
