MBA Advocacy Update: June 8, 2020
MBA remains actively engaged with decision-makers at all levels of government to help shape the response to the effects of the pandemic on the mortgage market. Last week, the Senate passed legislation that would ease restrictions on the SBA’s Paycheck Protection Program, which President Trump signed into law on Friday.
An Upbeat Jobs Report, Followed by a ‘Misclassification Error’
At 8:30 a.m. on Friday, the Bureau of Labor Statistics issued a surprising May unemployment report: instead of the 8 million job losses expected by economists’ consensus, the report showed a dramatic 2.5 million increase in jobs, and a 1.4 percent dip in the unemployment rate, from 14.7 percent in April to 13.3 percent. But there was a catch--a huge catch.
MBA Chart of the Week: Measures of Apartment Stress in March and May
There has been an important disconnect between the labor market and apartment markets over the last two months.
Analysts: Missing Spring Home Sales to Disperse over ‘Years’
When the coronavirus pandemic turned the economy upside down, anxiety and uncertainty about the future initially kept many home buyers and sellers at bay. Inventory and sales have picked up over the past month, though, and a panel of housing experts and economists sponsored by Zillow, Seattle, say the U.S. housing market hasn't lost those missing springtime transactions for good. But it could take years for a full recovery.
