Housing Snapshot
Mortgage interest rates dropped sharply last week, leading Freddie Mac Chief Economist Frank Nothaft to speculate that mortgage interest rates this year could average lower than they were last year. Nothaft expects adjustable rate financing in 2004 to account for the highest share of the mortgage market since 1995. On the broader economic front, uninspired by the gains they have been seeing in the job market, consumers were losing confidence early this month, according to the University of Michigan. But if Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan turns out to be correct in what he told Congress last Thursday, consumers may soon have more to cheer about. Greenspan voiced confidence that the job situation will be turning around shortly. The Commerce Department reported a record $541.8 billion U.S. trade deficit in 2003, and terrorist railroad bombings in Spain had a major downward impact on the stock market in their immediate aftermath. Framing lumber was down for a change last week, according to Random Lengths, falling by $6 to $392 per 1,000 board feet. A persisting concern for home builders, the prices of oriented strand board and plywood remained high: the mill price for 15/32-inch 3-ply CDX Southern Westside plywood was $490 per 1,000 square feet; and OSB was $498. [ MORE ]
Mortgage Interest Rates
30-Year Fixed-Rate: 5.41%
15-Year Fixed-Rate: 4.69%
1-Year ARM: 3.41%
Housing Starts - Jan. 2004*
Total: 1.903 million
Single-Family Starts: 1.537 million
Multifamily Starts: 339,000
New Home Sales Jan. 2004*
1.106 million
Existing Home Sales Jan. 2004*
6.04 million
* Seasonally adjusted annual rate