US Housing Market Data Response New Home Sales (Aug. 13) New home sales did not fully reverse July’s unexpectedly sharp drop. But August’s data seem consistent with our view that the rise in mortgage interest rates seen over recent months will cool, but not... 25th September 2013 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Update When will the Financial Policy Committee act to restrain house prices? Despite extensive media coverage, outside of central London there is little evidence of a house price boom, and there has been no increase in the stock of mortgage debt. Therefore, there seems little... 25th September 2013 · 1 min read
UK Economics Update Financial Policy Committee plays down bubble fears Today’s statement by the Bank of England’s Financial Policy Committee (FPC) lacked drama. While the Committee is keeping a close eye on developments in the housing market, the approach for now is... 25th September 2013 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Data Response Case-Shiller Home Prices (Jul. 13) The latest rise in the annual rate of house price inflation in July may be the most eye-catching part of today’s Case-Shiller house price report. But the real story is a welcome slowdown in the... 24th September 2013 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Data Response BBA Mortgage Lending (Aug. 13) The number of mortgages approved by banks increased again in August. But the momentum in mortgage lending growth appears to be fading, and there is scant evidence that a renewed secured credit boom is... 24th September 2013 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Update New home prices set to slow by more than existing home prices House price growth for new-build homes is set to slow more quickly than price growth for the existing housing stock over the next year, cutting into the price premium attached to a new home. 23rd September 2013 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Update Are mortgage rates set to rise? The sharp rise in swap rates in recent months has raised concerns that fixed mortgage rates will now follow. But while lenders will still be keen to maintain a healthy margin on any new lending, some... 20th September 2013 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Data Response Existing Home Sales (Aug. 13) The further rise in existing home sales in August may reflect a rush of sales from buyers keen to avoid any further rise in mortgage interest rates. 19th September 2013 · 1 min read
US Housing Market Data Response Housing Starts (Aug. 13) The small rise in starts in August, which was below expectations and would have been a fall were it not for downward revisions to earlier data, is not as disappointing as it first appears. The figures... 18th September 2013 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Update Have house prices returned to pre-crisis highs? The ONS house price index, which shows that prices in England have returned to pre-crisis highs, has made plenty of headlines today. But compared to other indices, the ONS measure places greater... 18th September 2013 · 1 min read
UK Economics Update Housebuilding should continue to support the recovery Although there are worries that the Government’s housing schemes will push up house prices rather than activity, housebuilding has picked up and we expect it to give further support to the recovery. 16th September 2013 · 1 min read
Canada Economics Weekly Canada's home ownership fling worse than US The third and final wave of data from Statistics Canada's National Household Survey (NHS) published last week reveal that the Canadian home ownership rate surpassed the record peak at the height of... 16th September 2013 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Update Should there be a cap on house price inflation? A boom in house prices would certainly not be sustainable, and the authorities should take action to prevent this. But the Bank of England already has new tools to prevent any unwarranted rise in... 13th September 2013 · 1 min read
Canada Data Response Teranet-National Bank House Prices (Aug.) The latest pick-up in house price inflation is consistent with the reported rebound in existing home sales. But as mortgage rates continue to rise, we expect falling home sales will eventually result... 12th September 2013 · 1 min read
UK Housing Market Update Growth in buy-to-let lending lagging overall market There was a further slight uptick in mortgage approvals in September, but it would be premature to view this as the start of a sustained recovery in the housing market. The improvement was modest, and... 12th September 2013 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Brazil’s housing bubble revisited A warning from US economist Robert Shiller about the recent sharp rise in Brazilian house prices has revived fears of a property bubble in Latin America’s largest economy. Our position remains that... 12th September 2013 · 1 min read
