Which Model Is More Accurate : The Case-Shiller Index Or The Home Price Index?

The private-sector Case-Shiller Index reported home values up 5 percent nationwide in June. The government’s own Home Price Index, however, reached a different conclusion. According to the Federal Home Finance Agency, month-to-month home values fell 0.3 percent in June, and values are down by 1.7...

Home Sales Are Back On The Rise After A 2-Month Pullback

Just one week after reports of Existing Home Sales and New Home Sales plunging, the housing market is signaling that auturm may fare better than did summer. The number of homes under contract to sell rose 5 percent in July. The data comes from the July Pending Home Sales Index, as published by the National...

What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week : September 7, 2010

Last week was a roller-coaster ride in the conforming mortgage market.  After opening the week by making new, all-time lows, markets reversed sharply on better-than-expected data in manufacturing and housing, and data from overseas. Rates rose through Wednesday and Thursday, then Friday’s jobs report...

August 2010 Jobs Report Pushes Mortgage Rates Higher

On the first Friday of each month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics releases Non-Farm Payrolls data for the month prior.  The data is more commonly called “the jobs report” and it’s a major factor in setting mortgage rates for residents of Washington and homeowners everywhere....

August’s Fed Minutes Lead Mortgage Rates Higher

Home affordability took a slight hit this week after the Federal Reserve’s release of its August 10 meeting minutes. The “Fed Minutes” is a lengthy, detailed recap of a Federal Open Market Committee meeting, not unlike the minutes published after a corporate conference, or condo...