The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced their conforming loan limit values (CLLs) for mortgages acquired by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the Enterprises) for 2025. The FHFA says that in most of the US, the 2025 CLL value for one-unit properties will be $806,500, an increase of $39,950 (or 5.2%) from 2024. The Housing and Economic Recovery Act (HERA) requires FHFA to adjust the Enterprises’ baseline CLL value each year to reflect the change in the average U.S. home price. Click here to read more at the FHFA.
Author: Brad Beckett
Brad Beckett
Director of Education & Outreach, National Real Estate Investors Association
The U.S. government is reporting that total construction spending in October, 2024 was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $2,174 billion, which is 0.4% higher than September’s revised number. However, October’s revised estimate is 5% higher than one year ago. Residential construction came in at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $934 billion in October, which is 1.5% higher than September’s revised estimate. Click here to read the full report at the U.S. Census Bureau.
The latest S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA Index reported a 3.9% annual increase for September, 2024. Their 10-City Composite increased 5.2% and their 20-City Composite increased 4.6%, year-over-year. “Home price growth stalled in the third quarter, after a steady start to 2024…The slight downtick could be attributed to technical factors as the seasonally adjusted figures boasted a 16th consecutive all-time high ” Said Brian D. Luke, Head of Commodities, Real & Digital Assets at S&P Dow Jones Indices (S&P DJI). Click here to read the full report at S&P Dow Jones Indices.
This Saturday, December 7th, is the 83rd anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. On that date, “which will live in infamy,” 2,335 servicemen died in the defense of freedom. The attack plunged America into the Second World War and put us on a course to become the undisputed leader of the Free World. Today’s graphic from the U.S. Navy gives us Pearl Harbor by the numbers and breaks down that fateful day. As always, stay safe and have a Happy Friday!!! “Yesterday, December 7, 1941, a date which will live in infamy, the United States of America…
Rental information site Zumper recently released their latest monthly National Rent Report for November, 2024. According to their data, median rent for 1-bedroom apartments was $1534 (same as October) and $1,902 (down 0.4%) for two-bedrooms. Be sure to check out their entire list of the top 100 metro areas. “Our national rent index showing flat to declining monthly rates is a clear sign of a shift into the slow moving season…We anticipate that national rents will continue to see modest declines through the rest of this year and likely into the beginning of next year as well.” Said Zumper…
According to the latest Federal Housing Finance Agency’s (FHFA) House Price Index (HPI), home prices were up 4.3% from Q3 2023 to Q3 2024. The FHFA HPI is the nation’s only collection of public, freely available house price indexes that measure changes in single-family home values based on data from all 50 states and over 400 American cities that extend back to the mid-1970s. “U.S. house price growth slowed in the third quarter, continuing a trend that started in the fourth quarter of the previous year…While house prices continued to increase because housing demand outpaced the locked-in housing supply, elevated…
As 2024 begins to wind down, the forecasts for 2025 are starting to roll in. A recent prognostication from Bankrate.com. says in 2025 the housing market could have a more favorable outlook than much of 2024 had, due to improving mortgage rates and inventory levels. However, they also say there’s still uncertainty in the air, though: Rising prices and slowing construction could cause some trouble for buyers in 2025, and the impact of the recent U.S. presidential election remains a wild card. Indeed… Some key takeaways: Would-be homebuyers continue to be discouraged by elevated mortgage rates & rising home prices.…
According to the latest CoreLogic Single-Family Rent Index (SFRI), U.S. single-family home rental prices are experiencing slower growth in key rental metros which all experienced population spikes during the pandemic. According to their report, annual U.S. rent growth registered a 2% increase in September, continuing a slowing trend that began in early 2024 but is well below the average annual rent growth of 3.5% that occurred in the decade prior to the pandemic. “Single-family annual rent growth slowed in September to the lowest rate in over four years, and monthly rent growth posted a second month of below-seasonal trend growth,…
The National Association of Realtors is reporting that pending home sales rose 2% in in October, 2024. The NAR’s Pending Home Sales Index (a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings) came in at 77.4 in October. The NAR says momentum is building…Indeed. “Homebuying momentum is building after nearly two years of suppressed home sales…Even with mortgage rates modestly rising despite the Federal Reserve’s decision to cut the short-term interbank lending rate in September, continuous job additions and more housing inventory are bringing more consumers to the market.” Said the NAR’s Chief Economist, Lawrence Yun. Click here to read the full…
The U.S. Government is reporting that sales of new single-family houses in October, 2024 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 610k, which is 17.3% lower than September’s revised rate and is 9.4% lower than one year ago. The median sales price of new houses sold in October was $437,300 with an average sales price of $545,800. There were an estimated 481k new houses for sale at the end of October representing a 9.5-month supply at the current sales rate. Click here to read the full report at the U.S. Census Bureau.
