Foreclosures | Mortgages | Financing
Monthly business was modestly higher at the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp., as was the government-sponsored enterprise’s portfolio.
Freddie Mac’s total mortgage portfolio concluded November at $1.9948 trillion. The balance was up from $1.9891 trillion a month earlier.
The McLean, Virginia-based firm’s total portfolio also rose compared to the same date a year earlier, when the balance came to $1.9319 trillion.
From:: Financing
OvaScience Inc. fell more than 30% in late trading Wednesday after the fertility-treatments company announced a restructuring that includes massive layoffs and the departure of two of its top executives. OvaScience said it would slow down commercial expansion and studies of a once-promising fertility treatment called Augment and reduce its workforce by about 30%. Chief Executive Harald Stock and COO Paul Chapman, whom OvaScience noted were brought on board to lead commercial expansion of Augment, decided to leave the company amid the changes. OvaScience has struggled this year, offering new shares in May for $7, much lower than the going price at that time but much higher than current prices. The company, which had a market capitalization of $105.6 million with a per-share price of $2.97 at the close Wednesday, fell to about $2 a share in after-hours action.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.
From:: Stock Market News
Existing-home sales increased 0.7 percent to 5.61 million in November, reports the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR), up from 5.57 million in October—reversing the typical trend toward a slowdown at this time of year. The November numbers, up 15.4 percent from last November, mark the highest sales pace since February 2007. The upward pull, according to the report, was driven primarily by activity in the Northeast, which grew 8.0 percent to 810,000.
“The healthiest job market since the Great Recession and the anticipation of some buyers to close on a home before mortgage rates accurately rose from their historically low level have combined to drive sales higher in recent months,” says Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist. “Furthermore, it’s no coincidence that home shoppers in the Northeast—where price growth has been tame all year—had the most success last month.”
“With the holidays around the corner and weather getting frosty in much of the country, November is typically the slowest month of the fall,” says Jonathan Smoke, realtor.com® chief economist, “but this year it was abnormally strong. Last month, we saw the highest level of sales for November since 2006, and there was more buyer and seller traffic than there was in October.”
Last month, the median existing-home price was $234,900, up 6.8 percent from last year ($220,000). Total housing inventory, meanwhile, dropped 8.0 percent to 1.85 million—now 9.3 percent lower than a year ago (2.04 million). Unsold inventory is at a 4.0-month supply at the current sales pace, which is down from 4.3 months in October.
“Consumers should be aware that the overall supply of homes for sale remains very low, and pent-up demand is leading to large jumps in price acceleration,” says Smoke. “The number of homes for sale is down 11 percent compared to a year ago, and median prices are up 7 percent. On top of that, December is tracking to an even bigger decline.”
“Existing housing supply at the beginning of the year was inadequate and is now even worse heading into 2017,” says Yun. “Rental units are also seeing this shortage. As a result, both home prices and rents continue to far outstrip incomes in much of the country.”
According to Freddie Mac, the average commitment rate for a 30-year, conventional, fixed-rate mortgage leaped to 3.77 percent in November from 3.47 percent in October (highest rate since January at 3.87 percent). The average commitment rate for all of 2015 was 3.85 percent.
“Buyers planning to purchase in 2017 will contend with even more limited supply while they also race against the prospect of mortgage rates reaching levels we have not seen since 2010,” Smoke says. “The good news is that rates are rising because of continued economic growth, and many households should see income gains in 2017. However, those gains are not likely to be higher than the combined effect of higher prices and higher mortgage rates.”
“First-time buyers in higher-priced cities will be most affected by rising prices and mortgage rates next year and will likely have to stretch their budget …read more
From:: Finance and Economy
Red Hat Inc. plummeted more than 13% Wednesday afternoon after announcing the departure of its chief financial officer along with an earnings report that included a lower than expected forecast. The open-source enterprise-tech company reported net income of $68 million, or 37 cents a share, on revenue of $615.3 million. After adjustments for stock-based compensation and other effects, Red Hat claimed earnings of 61 cents a share. Analysts polled by FactSet expected Red Hat to report adjusted earnings of 58 cents a share on sales of $619 million. Red Hat forecast fourth-quarter and full-year revenue ranges of $614 million-to-$622 million and $2.397 billion to $2.405 billion, respectively. Both ranges came in lower than analyst expectations, according to FactSet, which found average analyst forecasts of $638 million for the fourth quarter and $2.42 billion for the year. Red Hat also said that CFO Frank Calderoni is stepping down to accept a CEO job at another company, and will be replaced on an interim basis by principal accounting officer Eric Shander. Red Hat shares fell to less than $69 after closing with a 0.5% gain at $79.79.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.
From:: Stock Market News
There’s no stopping it: the population is aging. In less than 20 years, in fact, one in three households will be headed by someone aged 65 or older, according to a recent report by the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies—a finding that emphasizes the already-dire need for accessible, affordable housing.
Even more stirring, according to the report, Projections and Implications for Housing a Growing Population: Older Adults 2015-2035: though the 65-and-older population will expand from 48 million to 79 million by 2035, with 50 million acting as heads of households, just 3.5 percent of existing houses feature supportive amenities such as widened entrances and pathways. Moreover, much of the 65-and-older population will have the means to finance an aging-in-place lifestyle, aggravating demand.
Addressing the incoming—and overwhelming—call for outfitted housing is essential, says Chris Herbert, managing director of the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies.
“The housing implications of this surge in the older adult population are many, and call for innovative approaches to respond to growing need for housing that is affordable, accessible and linked to supportive services that will grow exponentially over the next two decades,” says Herbert.
Affordability will be most concerning to older low-income renters, according to the report, which projects that by 2035, 6.4 million older low-income renters will have to pay over 30 percent of their income for housing. Upwards of 7 million, however, will have access to federal rental subsidies, alleviating the strain—though to an extent.
“Today…we only serve one-third of those who qualify for assistance,” says Jennifer Molinsky, lead author of the report and senior research associate at the Joint Center. “Just continuing at this rate—which would be a stretch—would leave 4.9 million people to find affordable housing in the private market.”
With lacking housing supply a crisis-level issue across generations, addressing the specific needs of the older population will necessitate cooperation between several constituents, the report concludes.
“Right now, more than 19 million older adults live in unaffordable or inadequate housing, and that problem will only grow worse in the next two decades as our population ages,” says Lisa Marsh Ryerson, president of AARP Foundation, which provided funding for the report. “This important follow-up study to Harvard’s ground-breaking 2014 report on housing America’s older adults not only calls attention to important trends but also helps point to the kind of solutions—requiring cross-sector collaboration between the housing industry, policymakers, and public, private and philanthropic organizations—that will fulfill older adults’ ardent desire to continue living independently at home with security and dignity.”
Sixty-one percent of those surveyed in a recent HomeAdvisor report say they plan to stay in their home “indefinitely” as they age.
Source: Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies
For the latest real estate news and trends, bookmark RISMedia.com.
The post Growing Pains: Meeting the Housing Needs of an Exploding Older Population appeared first on RISMedia.
From:: Finance and Economy
Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. shares fell more than 5% in late trading Wednesday after the retail chain announced earnings and a forecast that came in lower than expectations. The company said it had net income of $126.4 million, or 85 cents a share, on sales of $2.96 billion in its fiscal third quarter, reflecting a stark decline in profit from $1.09 a share in the same period a year before. Analysts polled by FactSet expected the company to report earnings of 98 cents a share on sales of $3 billion. Bed Bath & Beyond also said it now expects full fiscal-year profit to be at the low end of its guidance range, which was $4.50 a share to about $5 a share. Analysts had projected full-year earnings of $4.73 a share, according to FactSet. Bed Bath & Beyond stock fell to less than $43.50 in after-hours trading, after closing with a 1.4% decline at $45.56.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.
From:: Stock Market News
Shares of Micron Technology Inc. ran up 7.4% in after-hours trade Wednesday, after the memory chip maker reported its first quarterly profit in a year, that beat expectations. Earnings for the quarter to Dec. 1 were $180 million, or 16 cents a share, down from $206 million, or 19 cents a share, in the same period a year ago. Excluding non-recurring items, adjusted earnings per share came to 32 cents, beating the FactSet consensus of 26 cents. Revenue rose 23% to $3.97 billion from $3.35 billion, the first year-over-year growth in seven quarters and above the FactSet consensus of $3.95 billion. The company said the growth in revenue was primarily a result of an 18% increase and DRAM and a 26% rise in trade NAND sales volumes, and a 5% increase in DRAM average selling prices. “Positive market momentum, driven by favorable demand trends and limited industry supply, produced solid results for our first quarter,” said Chief Executive Mark Durcan. The stock had soared 45% year to date through Wednesday’s close, while the PHLX Semiconductor Index had climbed 38% and the S&P 500 had gained 11%.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.
From:: Stock Market News
For investors love volatility, Wednesday has been their worst nightmare in a little over two years. The Dow Jones Industrial Average has traded in a intraday range of just 43.71 points, with the intraday high of 19,986.56 reached within five minutes of the open, and the low of 19,942.85 hit within 25 minutes of the close. That’s on track to be the narrowest intraday point range since it traded in a 42.60-point range (17,833.76-17,791.16) on Nov. 26, 2014, which was the day before Thanksgiving. The Dow was recently down 16 points at 19,958, or just below the midpoint of the day’s range of 19,964.71.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.
From:: Stock Market News
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — China critic Peter Navarro will run a new White House effort on trade in the Trump administration, the Financial Times reported. Navarro will head what’s called the National Trade Council that would aim to boost job creation in infrastructure and defense and work with the National Security Council, the National Economic Council and the Domestic Policy Council. The report said it would mark the first time there was an office dedicated to manufacturing inside the White House. Navarro co-authored a white paper — along with Commerce Secretary nominee Wilbur Ross — on the trade, regulatory and energy policy impact of the Trump economic plan.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.
From:: Stock Market News
Oil prices finished lower Wednesday, halting three straight sessions of gains, after the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported a larger-than-expected climb in crude stockpiles. West Texas Intermediate crude oil for February delivery settled down 81 cents, or 1.5%, at $52.49 a barrel. The U.S. Energy Information Administration early Wednesday indicated that domestic crude supplies grew by 2.26 million barrels in the week ended Dec. 16. Stockpiles had been expected to fall by 2.3 million barrels, according to a survey of 13 analysts and traders by The Wall Street Journal. The loss ends three straight sessions of advances for WTI oil in the wake of an agreement by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and other non-OPEC producers to curb output.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.
From:: Stock Market News