by Calculated Risk on 7/24/2018 10:02:00 AM

From the Richmond Fed: Fifth District Manufacturing Firms Saw Slowing Growth in July

Fifth District manufacturing expanded at a slower pace in July, according to results of the most recent survey from the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. The composite manufacturing index fell from 21 in June to 20 in July, but it remained in solid expansionary territory. This decrease resulted from a decrease in the employment and shipments indexes, as the other component (new orders) held steady. Firms were optimistic in July, expecting to see robust growth across most indicators in the coming months.

Manufacturing employment growth slowed in July, as the employment index fell from 23 in June to 22 in July. Firms continued to struggle to find workers with the skills they needed and expect this struggle to continue in the next six months.
emphasis added

All of the regional manufacturing reports for July have been solid so far.

by Calculated Risk on 7/24/2018 08:39:00 AM

From Black Knight: Black Knight’s First Look: June Sees Fewest Foreclosure Starts in Over 17 Years; Active Foreclosure Inventory Falls Below 300,000 for First Time Since Q3 2006

• Foreclosure starts fell another 3.1 percent in June for the lowest single-month total in more than 17 years

• Active foreclosures continued to decline as well, falling below 300,000 for the first time in nearly 12 years

• The inventory of loans in active foreclosure has fallen 30 percent (-119k) over the past 12 months

• Delinquencies edged seasonally upward in June, but remain 1.59 percent below last year’s levels

• After rising following the 2017 hurricane season, 90-day delinquencies hit a new post-recession low

According to Black Knight's First Look report for June, the percent of loans delinquent increased 2.7% in June compared to May, and decreased 1.6% year-over-year.

The percent of loans in the foreclosure process decreased 4.5% in June and were down 30.0% over the last year.

Black Knight reported the U.S. mortgage delinquency rate (loans 30 or more days past due, but not in foreclosure) was 3.74% in June, up from 3.64% in May.

The percent of loans in the foreclosure process decreased in June to 0.56%.

The number of delinquent properties, but not in foreclosure, is down 7,000 properties year-over-year, and the number of properties in the foreclosure process is down 119,000 properties year-over-year.

Black Knight: Percent Loans Delinquent and in Foreclosure Process
	June 2018	May 2018	June 2017	June 2016
Delinquent	3.74%	3.64%	3.80%	4.31%
In Foreclosure	0.56%	0.59%	0.81%	1.10%
Number of properties:
Number of properties that are delinquent, but not in foreclosure:	1,925,000	1,867,000	1,932,000	2,178,000
Number of properties in foreclosure pre-sale inventory:	291,000	303,000	410,000	558,000
Total Properties	2,216,000	2,171,000	2,342,000	2,736,000

by Calculated Risk on 7/23/2018 07:31:00 PM

From Matthew Graham at Mortgage News Daily: Mortgage Rates Surge to 1-Month Highs

Mortgage rates rose today at the quickest pace in months, ultimately hitting the highest levels since June 25th for the average lender. While neither of those are "fun" facts for fans of low rates, they are made slightly more palatable by the nature of the recent range.

Specifically, rates hadn't moved very much since late June. The average mortgage seeker will not have seen a change in their quoted interest rate during that time (the only adjustments have been to upfront closing costs/credits). The point is that it didn't require a huge move to be able to say "highest in a month" or "fastest pace in months." [30YR FIXED - 4.625% - 4.75%]
emphasis added

Tuesday:
• At 9:00 AM ET, FHFA House Price Index for May 2018. This was originally a GSE only repeat sales, however there is also an expanded index.

• At 10:00 AM, Richmond Fed Survey of Manufacturing Activity for July.

by Calculated Risk on 7/23/2018 03:17:00 PM

Update: Watching existing home "for sale" inventory is very helpful. As an example, the increase in inventory in late 2005 helped me call the top for housing.

And the decrease in inventory eventually helped me correctly call the bottom for house prices in early 2012, see: The Housing Bottom is Here.

And in 2015, it appeared the inventory build in several markets was ending, and that boosted price increases. 

I don't have a crystal ball, but watching inventory helps understand the housing market.

Inventory, on a national basis, was up 0.5% year-over-year (YoY) in June, the first YoY increase since June 2015!

The graph below shows the YoY change for non-contingent inventory in Houston, Las Vegas, Sacramento and also Phoenix (through June) and total existing home inventory as reported by the NAR (through June 2018).

Click on graph for larger image.

This shows the YoY change in inventory for Houston, Las Vegas, Phoenix, and Sacramento.  The black line is the year-over-year change in inventory as reported by the NAR.

Note that inventory in Sacramento was up 26% year-over-year in June (inventory was still very low), and has increased YoY for nine consecutive months. 

Also note that inventory is still down 11% YoY in Las Vegas (red), but the YoY decline has been getting smaller - and inventory in Vegas will probably be up YoY very soon.

Houston is a special case, and inventory was up for several years due to lower oil prices, but declined YoY recently as oil prices increased.

Inventory is a key for the housing market, and I will be watching inventory for the impact of the new tax law and higher mortgage rates on housing.   Currently I expect national inventory will be up YoY at the end of 2018 (but still be low).

This is not comparable to late 2005 when inventory increased sharply signaling the end of the housing bubble, but it does appear that inventory is bottoming nationally.

by Calculated Risk on 7/23/2018 02:08:00 PM

The CAR reported today: California home sales stumble in June as median price hits new high for second straight month, C.A.R. reports

Closed escrow sales of existing, single-family detached homes in California totaled a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 410,800 units in June, according to information collected by C.A.R. from more than 90 local REALTOR® associations and MLSs statewide. The statewide annualized sales figure represents what would be the total number of homes sold during 2018 if sales maintained the June pace throughout the year. It is adjusted to account for seasonal factors that typically influence home sales.

June’s sales figure was up 0.4 percent from the revised 409,270 level in May and down 7.3 percent compared with home sales in June 2017 of 443,120. The year-over-year sales decline was the largest in nearly four years.
…
“California’s housing market underperformed again, despite an increase in active listings for the third straight month,” said C.A.R. President Steve White. “The lackluster spring homebuying season could be a sign of waning buyer interest as endlessly rising home prices and buyer fatigue adversely affected pent-up demand.”
...
Statewide active listings improved for the third consecutive month, increasing 8.1 percent from the previous year. The year-over-year increase was slightly below that of last month, which was the largest since January 2015, when active listings jumped 11.0 percent.
emphasis added

Here is some data from the NAR and CAR (ht Tom Lawler)

YOY % Change, Existing SF Homes for Sale
	NAR (National)	CAR (California)
Sep-17	-8.4%	-11.2%
Oct-17	-10.4%	-11.5%
Nov-17	-9.7%	-11.5%
Dec-17	-11.5%	-12.0%
Jan-18	-9.5%	-6.6%
Feb-18	-8.6%	-1.3%
Mar-18	-7.2%	-1.0%
Apr-18	-6.3%	1.9%
May-18	-5.1	8.3%
Jun-18	0.5%	8.1%

by Calculated Risk on 7/23/2018 11:59:00 AM

Earlier: NAR: Existing-Home Sales Decline in June, Inventory UP Year-over-year

The big story in the monthly existing home report was that inventory was UP year-over-year for the first time since 2015.  I've write more about this.

A few key points:

1) As usual, housing economist Tom Lawler's forecast was closer to the NAR report than the consensus. See: Lawler: Early Read on Existing Home Sales in April.   The consensus was for sales of 5.45 million SAAR, Lawler estimated the NAR would report 5.35 million SAAR in June, and the NAR actually reported 5.38 million.

2) Inventory is still very low, but increased 0.5% year-over-year (YoY) in June. This was the 1st year-over-year increase since June 2015, following 36 consecutive months with a year-over-year decline in inventory.

The following graph shows existing home sales Not Seasonally Adjusted (NSA).

Click on graph for larger image.

Sales NSA in June (570,000, red column) were  below sales in June 2017 (600,000, NSA).

Sales NSA through June (first six months) are down about 2.2% from the same period in 2017.

This is a small decline - but it is possible there has been an impact from higher interest rates and / or the changes to the tax law (eliminating property taxes write-off, etc).

by Calculated Risk on 7/23/2018 10:11:00 AM

From the NAR: Existing-Home Sales Subside 0.6 Percent in June

Existing-home sales decreased for the third straight month in June, as declines in the South and West exceeded sales gains in the Northeast and Midwest, according to the National Association of Realtors®. The ongoing supply and demand imbalance helped push June’s median sales price to a new all-time high.

Total existing-home sales, which are completed transactions that include single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops, decreased 0.6 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.38 million in June from a downwardly revised 5.41 million in May. With last month’s decline, sales are now 2.2 percent below a year ago.
...
Total housing inventory at the end of June climbed 4.3 percent to 1.95 million existing homes available for sale, and is 0.5 percent above a year ago (1.94 million) – the first year-over-year increase since June 2015. Unsold inventory is at a 4.3-month supply at the current sales pace (4.2 months a year ago).
emphasis added

Click on graph for larger image.

This graph shows existing home sales, on a Seasonally Adjusted Annual Rate (SAAR) basis since 1993.

Sales in June (5.38 million SAAR) were 0.6% lower than last month, and were 2.2% below the June 2017 rate.

The second graph shows nationwide inventory for existing homes.

According to the NAR, inventory increased to 1.95 million in June from 1.87 million in May.   Headline inventory is not seasonally adjusted, and inventory usually decreases to the seasonal lows in December and January, and peaks in mid-to-late summer.

The last graph shows the year-over-year (YoY) change in reported existing home inventory and months-of-supply. Since inventory is not seasonally adjusted, it really helps to look at the YoY change. Note: Months-of-supply is based on the seasonally adjusted sales and not seasonally adjusted inventory.

Inventory increased 0.5% year-over-year in June compared to June 2017.  

Months of supply was at 4.3 months in June.

Sales were below the consensus view. For existing home sales, a key number is inventory - and inventory is still low, but appears to be bottoming. I'll have more later ...

by Calculated Risk on 7/23/2018 08:37:00 AM

From the Chicago Fed: Index points to a rebound in economic growth in June

Led by improvements in production-related indicators, the Chicago Fed National Activity Index (CFNAI) rebounded to +0.43 in June from –0.45 in May. Two of the four broad categories of indicators that make up the index increased from May, and three of the four categories made positive contributions to the index in June. The index’s three-month moving average, CFNAI-MA3, edged up to +0.16 in June from +0.10 in May.
emphasis added

This graph shows the Chicago Fed National Activity Index (three month moving average) since 1967.

Click on graph for larger image.

This suggests economic activity was above the historical trend in June (using the three-month average).

According to the Chicago Fed:

The index is a weighted average of 85 indicators of growth in national economic activity drawn from four broad categories of data: 1) production and income; 2) employment, unemployment, and hours; 3) personal consumption and housing; and 4) sales, orders, and inventories.
...
A zero value for the monthly index has been associated with the national economy expanding at its historical trend (average) rate of growth; negative values with below-average growth (in standard deviation units); and positive values with above-average growth.

by Calculated Risk on 7/22/2018 08:23:00 PM

Weekend:
• Schedule for Week of July 22, 2018

Monday:
• At 8:30 AM ET, Chicago Fed National Activity Index for June. This is a composite index of other data.

• At 10:00 AM, Existing Home Sales for June from the National Association of Realtors (NAR). The consensus is for 5.45 million SAAR, up from 5.43 million in May. Housing economist Tom Lawler estimates the NAR will reports sales of 5.35 million SAAR for June and that inventory will be down 4.1% year-over-year.

From CNBC: Pre-Market Data and Bloomberg futures: S&P 500 and DOW futures are mostly unchanged (fair value).

Oil prices were down over the last week with WTI futures at $68.24 per barrel and Brent at $73.18 per barrel.  A year ago, WTI was at $47, and Brent was at $48 - so oil prices are up 50% year-over-year.

Here is a graph from Gasbuddy.com for nationwide gasoline prices. Nationally prices are at $2.83 per gallon. A year ago prices were at $2.27 per gallon - so gasoline prices are up 56 cents per gallon year-over-year.

by Calculated Risk on 7/22/2018 08:55:00 AM

Housing economist Tom Lawler has been sending me his predictions of what the NAR will report for 8+ years.  The table below shows the consensus for each month, Lawler's predictions, and the NAR's initially reported level of sales. 

Lawler hasn't always been closer than the consensus, but usually when there has been a fairly large spread between Lawler's estimate and the "consensus", Lawler has been closer.

As an example, for last month, May 2018, the consensus was for sales of 5.56 million on a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) basis. Lawler estimated 5.47 million, and the NAR reported 5.43 million (the consensus missed by 130 thousand compared to 40 thousand for Lawler).

NOTE: There have been times when Lawler "missed", but then he pointed out an apparent error in the NAR data - and the subsequent revision corrected that error.  As an example, see: The “Curious Case” of Existing Home Sales in the South in April

For June 2018, the consensus is that the NAR will report sales of 5.45 million  SAAR. However,  housing economist Tom Lawler estimates the NAR will report sales of 5.35 million.

Lawler's estimate is a little below the consensus, so I'd take the under for June. Note: The NAR is scheduled to report June Existing Home Sales tomorrow, Monday, July 23rd at 10:00 AM ET.

Over the last eight years, the consensus average miss was 147 thousand, and  Lawler's average miss was 68 thousand.

Existing Home Sales, Forecasts and NAR Report millions, seasonally adjusted annual rate basis (SAAR)
Month	Consensus	Lawler	NAR reported1
May-10	6.20	5.83	5.66
Jun-10	5.30	5.30	5.37
Jul-10	4.66	3.95	3.83
Aug-10	4.10	4.10	4.13
Sep-10	4.30	4.50	4.53
Oct-10	4.50	4.46	4.43
Nov-10	4.85	4.61	4.68
Dec-10	4.90	5.13	5.28
Jan-11	5.20	5.17	5.36
Feb-11	5.15	5.00	4.88
Mar-11	5.00	5.08	5.10
Apr-11	5.20	5.15	5.05
May-11	4.75	4.80	4.81
Jun-11	4.90	4.71	4.77
Jul-11	4.92	4.69	4.67
Aug-11	4.75	4.92	5.03
Sep-11	4.93	4.83	4.91
Oct-11	4.80	4.86	4.97
Nov-11	5.08	4.40	4.42
Dec-11	4.60	4.64	4.61
Jan-12	4.69	4.66	4.57
Feb-12	4.61	4.63	4.59
Mar-12	4.62	4.59	4.48
Apr-12	4.66	4.53	4.62
May-12	4.57	4.66	4.55
Jun-12	4.65	4.56	4.37
Jul-12	4.50	4.47	4.47
Aug-12	4.55	4.87	4.82
Sep-12	4.75	4.70	4.75
Oct-12	4.74	4.84	4.79
Nov-12	4.90	5.10	5.04
Dec-12	5.10	4.97	4.94
Jan-13	4.90	4.94	4.92
Feb-13	5.01	4.87	4.98
Mar-13	5.03	4.89	4.92
Apr-13	4.92	5.03	4.97
May-13	5.00	5.20	5.18
Jun-13	5.27	4.99	5.08
Jul-13	5.13	5.33	5.39
Aug-13	5.25	5.35	5.48
Sep-13	5.30	5.26	5.29
Oct-13	5.13	5.08	5.12
Nov-13	5.02	4.98	4.90
Dec-13	4.90	4.96	4.87
Jan-14	4.70	4.67	4.62
Feb-14	4.64	4.60	4.60
Mar-14	4.56	4.64	4.59
Apr-14	4.67	4.70	4.65
May-14	4.75	4.81	4.89
Jun-14	4.99	4.96	5.04
Jul-14	5.00	5.09	5.15
Aug-14	5.18	5.12	5.05
Sep-14	5.09	5.14	5.17
Oct-14	5.15	5.28	5.26
Nov-14	5.20	4.90	4.93
Dec-14	5.05	5.15	5.04
Jan-15	5.00	4.90	4.82
Feb-15	4.94	4.87	4.88
Mar-15	5.04	5.18	5.19
Apr-15	5.22	5.20	5.04
May-15	5.25	5.29	5.35
Jun-15	5.40	5.45	5.49
Jul-15	5.41	5.64	5.59
Aug-15	5.50	5.54	5.31
Sep-15	5.35	5.56	5.55
Oct-15	5.41	5.33	5.36
Nov-15	5.32	4.97	4.76
Dec-15	5.19	5.36	5.46
Jan-16	5.32	5.36	5.47
Feb-16	5.30	5.20	5.08
Mar-16	5.27	5.27	5.33
Apr-16	5.40	5.44	5.45
May-16	5.64	5.55	5.53
Jun-16	5.48	5.62	5.57
Jul-16	5.52	5.41	5.39
Aug-16	5.44	5.49	5.33
Sep-16	5.35	5.55	5.47
Oct-16	5.44	5.47	5.60
Nov-16	5.54	5.60	5.61
Dec-16	5.54	5.55	5.49
Jan-17	5.55	5.60	5.69
Feb-17	5.55	5.41	5.48
Mar-17	5.61	5.74	5.71
Apr-17	5.67	5.56	5.57
May-17	5.55	5.65	5.62
Jun-17	5.58	5.59	5.52
Jul-17	5.57	5.38	5.44
Aug-17	5.48	5.39	5.35
Sep-17	5.30	5.38	5.39
Oct-17	5.30	5.60	5.48
Nov-17	5.52	5.77	5.81
Dec-17	5.75	5.66	5.57
Jan-18	5.65	5.48	5.38
Feb-18	5.42	5.44	5.54
Mar-18	5.28	5.51	5.60
Apr-18	5.60	5.48	5.46
May-18	5.56	5.47	5.43
Jun-18	5.45	5.35	---
1NAR initially reported before revisions.