• U.S. Existing Home Sales Plunge in November, 'robust' obamanomics blame

    From Eddie Brown@21:1/5 to All on Wed Dec 23 02:45:55 2015
    XPost: sac.politics, alt.politics.democrats, alt.fan.rush-limbaugh
    XPost: alt.politics.economics

    Thank obama for 21 hour work-weeks, no benefits, having to pay
    into obamacare and pay for immigrant welfare too.

    WASHINGTON—Sales of previously owned homes plummeted in November
    as delays caused by new mortgage red-tape and a dwindling supply
    of residences on the market pushed down sales to a level not
    seen since April 2014.

    Existing-home sales fell 10.5% last month to a seasonally
    adjusted annualized rate of 4.76 million, the National
    Association of Realtors said Tuesday, well below the 5.32
    million economists expected. The double-digit decline was the
    sharpest since July 2010, when sales took a hit from the
    expiration of a home-buyer tax credit.

    The NAR blamed the lion’s share of the November decline on
    closing delays caused by new federal rules implemented by the
    Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in October, although it
    said rising home prices and tight inventory continued to
    challenge potential buyers.

    The changes, prompted by the 2010 Dodd-Frank financial law, are
    meant to help consumers better understand the terms of their
    mortgages before they sign and prevent what occurred during the
    housing boom when some borrowers agreed to loan terms they later
    found they didn’t understand. As the industry adjusts, the
    changes have added about five days to the length of time to
    close home sales, NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun told
    reporters. Closings took an average of 40.5 days in November,
    according to NAR.

    Several realtors said pressure on housing inventories is also
    driving the sales slump. The number of existing homes for sale
    fell more than 3% on the month in November and was down nearly
    2% on the year.

    “I think we’re still seeing a fair amount of tightness in active
    selling markets,” said Zillow Chief Economist Svenja Gudell,
    adding first-time buyers trying to enter the market at a lower
    price point are facing particular scarcity. Housing prices have
    also climbed faster than wages in many markets, making it more
    difficult for first-time buyers to save for a down payment.

    In November, the national median home price rose to $220,300,
    the 45th consecutive month of gains year over year, and 6.3%
    higher than the same month last year.

    Despite November’s decline, NAR said home sales are on track for
    their best year since the current economic expansion began.
    Economists said the underlying sales rate appears steady,
    despite the rule changes causing turbulence last month.

    “To the extent the new regulations delayed closings in November
    and pushed them back into December, there should be a sizable
    payback in the data on December existing home sales and going
    forward these regulations should not have an impact on sales,”
    Richard Moody of Regions Financial Corp. said in a note to
    clients.

    Gennadiy Goldberg of TD Securities took comfort from the fact
    that the decline in existing sales wasn’t foreshadowed by a fall
    in pending sales, “suggesting that the stark November weakness
    may be short-lived.”

    In a widely anticipated move last week, the Federal Reserve
    increased short-term interest rates for the first time in nearly
    a decade. Mortgage rates could eventually rise as a result but
    are expected to stay historically low for a while.

    The property market doesn’t appear spooked by the prospect of
    higher interest rates. Stephen Phillips, president of Berkshire
    Hathaway HomeServices, said he doesn’t expect the rate
    environment to be a significant headwind in 2016.

    News Corp, owner of The Wall Street Journal, also owns Move
    Inc., which operates a website and mobile products for NAR.

    http://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-existing-home-sales-plunge-in- november-1450796974

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