May Consumer Confidence Holds Steady

The Conference Board, New York, reported its monthly Consumer Confidence Index held steady in May, following a gain in April. The Index now stands at 117.2, down marginally from 117.5 in April.

Home Prices Maintain Robust Pace

Home prices continued to post double-digit annual gains amid a red-hot spring housing market, according to the Standard & Poor’s CoreLogic Case-Shiller Indices.

New Home Sales Tumble to 10-Month Low

New home sales took a double hit yesterday, according to HUD and the Census Bureau: not only did April new home sales fall by nearly 6 percent, March sales revised sharply downward by more than 10 percent.

Jim Rosen: Why Now is the Time for eClosings

When it comes to closing, there are lots of moving parts involved that have traditionally been in person or on physical paper. However, things had to change rapidly. Although a challenge in the beginning, it has also presented a large opportunity and given borrowers and lenders more flexibility in how they complete tasks.

Quote

“The rising inventory of homes not yet started likely reflects efforts by builders to wait for the supply of lumber and other building materials to catch back up with demand.”
–Mark Vitner, Senior Economist with Wells Fargo Securities, Charlotte, N.C.

Tom Lamalfa: May 2021 MBA Spring Conference Survey

In early May I surveyed 33 senior executives from 33 separate mortgage companies about a myriad of issues and topics both germane and important to the mortgage banking industry. It was the 25th time such a survey was conducted by me since 2008. Until 2020 the surveys were conducted face to face at the MBA National Secondary Market Conference every May and again in October at the MBA’s Annual Convention. However, the pandemic has shifted both sets of contacts to the telephone last year and this.