Three States Pursue Innovative Programs to Spur Affordable Housing

Several states that have been successful in pushing new affordable housing initiatives shared information about their innovative programs and policy strategies during the Fannie Mae Foundation’s annual housing conference …

Housing Snapshot

Mortgage interest rates nudged up slightly last week following the fourth Fed increase in the federal funds rate this year. But rates continue to be extremely affordable, which bodes well for new home sales and single-family housing construction. The general economy continued to pick up steam as retail sales grew by 0.2% for the month, according to the Commerce Department. Though retailers posted higher-than-expected sales, most of the sales favored high-end stores over discounters, suggesting that lower-income consumers are still feeling the pinch of energy prices. Jobs increased by 337,000, the best showing since March. About a fifth of those new jobs were in construction, and many of them were a result of the hurricanes that lashed Florida. Overall, consumer confidence in early November rose to 95.5, up from 91.7 in October. There was good news on the lumber front as well. Framing prices fell $7 for the week to $348 from $355 per 1,000 board feet, according to Random Lengths. A year earlier, the price was $333. Random Lengths' structural panel composite price, which includes oriented strand board, dropped from $322 per 1,000 square feet to $321, compared to $544 a year earlier.

Mortgage Interest Rates
30-Year Fixed-Rate	5.76%
15-Year Fixed-Rate	5.16%
1-Year ARM	4.16%
Housing Starts - Sep. 2004*
Total	1.898 million
Single-Family Starts	1.540 million
Multifamily Starts	358,000
New Home Sales Sep. 2004*	1.206 million
Existing Home Sales Sep. 2004*	6.75 million
* Seasonally adjusted annual rate