Market Update
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For the week of September 28, 2009 – Vol. 7, Issue 39 |
Market UpdateINFO THAT HITS US WHERE WE LIVE Well, it had to happen. After a four-month winning streak, Existing Home Sales dropped in August by 2.7% to an annual sales pace of 5.10 million. This offsets the big sales increase we had in July but the overall trend is still up by 3.4% over a year ago and the supply of existing homes is now down to 8.5 months.Good news came from the Federal Housing Finance Agency, which monitors prices of homes financed with conforming mortgages. They reported prices UP 0.3% in July, their third straight monthly rise. The week ended with single-family New Home Sales for August UP 0.7%. This was slightly less than expected, but 30% above their January low. Best of all, the supply of unsold new homes, down five months in a row, is now at just 7.3 months! Mortgage applications for purchase loans were up 5.6% from the week before. Applications for government-backed purchase loans were at their highest level ever. It seems many first-time homebuyers are making sure they get that $8,000 tax credit before it expires on November 30! All this was happening as the average interest rate for prime borrowers went below 5% on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages for the first time since May. Average points inched up to 1.12 (including the origination fee) for 80% loan-to-value ratio loans. >> Review of Last WeekTAKING A BREATHER... After a nice run up in prior weeks, the stock markets were down three days in a row, ending down for the week overall. But we have to point out that for the year, the Dow is still UP 10.1%, the S&P 500 is UP 15.6% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq is UP a whopping 32.6%! Pretty bullish performance. Problems worrying investors included the slip in Existing Home Sales covered above and Durable Goods Orders down 2.4% for August. That's actually less problematic than it appears, since the decline came mostly from a 30% drop in volatile aircraft orders –– in July, aircraft were up 25%.The Fed did not raise the rate at their meeting (no surprise) and came out with an FOMC statement that observed "economic activity has picked up" and "activity in the housing sector has increased." These indications of economic recovery were followed with the announcement the Fed would continue through the end of March 2010 their purchases of mortgage-backed securities, which help keep mortgage rates low. Initial claims for unemployment fell yet again last week, this time by 21,000, to 530,000. The four-week average of continuing claims dropped as well. Meanwhile, the Richmond Fed Index, which gauges manufacturing in the mid-Atlantic region, stayed at +14 in September, the fifth straight month it's been positive. The week ended with the boost in New Home Sales mentioned above, plus University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment at 73.5 for September, its highest reading since January a year ago! For the week, the Dow ended down 1.6%, to 9665.19; the S&P 500 was off 2.2%, to 1044.38; while the Nasdaq fell 2.0%, to 2090.92. As usually happens when stock prices sink, bonds soar. The FNMA 30-year 4.5% bond we watch finished up strongly from the previous week's $100.44 close, finishing at $101.12. It was no surprise that mortgage rates moved down a bit more, hitting levels they haven't seen since last May, as noted above. >> This Week’s ForecastCONFIDENCE, SPENDING, JOBS... The week begins with Consumer Confidence and ends with the September Jobs Report. Along the way, on the day Q3 ends, we get the final number on Q2 GDP plus the Chicago PMI take on manufacturing in the Midwest. Thursday, we'll be looking at Pending Home Sales, while the Fed will be focusing on the personal spending PCE number to keep an eye on inflation. |
359 Active Listings Avg. Price $1,145,389 Avg. Days on Market 130
14 Pending Listing Avg. Price $ 746,928 Avg. Days on Market 97
13 Sold Listing Avg. Price $ 561,107 Avg. Days on Market 117
Jan-Dec Y-T-D 2007 Solds Jan-Dec Y-T-D 2008 Solds
# of Listings Sold: 744 # of Listings Sold: 485
Avg. Sales Price: $ 876,403 Avg. sales Price: $ 773,000
Avg. Days on the Market: 89 Avg. Days on the Market: 100
Stats
# of Listings Sold: Down 35%
Avg. Sales Price: Down 12%
Avg. Days on Market: Up 12%
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Trumbull December 2008 - Single Family
166 Active Listings Avg. Price $505,600 Avg. Days on Market 118
10 Pending Listing Avg. Price $427,875 Avg. Days on Market 96
5 Sold Listing Avg. Price $411,840 Avg. Days on Market 200
Jan-Dec Y-T-D 2007 Solds Jan-Dec Y-T-D 2008 Solds
# of Listings Sold: 367 # of Listings Sold: 269
Avg. Sales Price: $ 514,215 Avg. sales Price: $ 463,145
Avg. Days on the Market: 95 Avg. Days on the Market: 86
Stats
# of Listings Sold: Down 27%
Avg. Sales Price: Down 10%
Avg. Days on Market: Down 9%
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Stratford December 2008 - Single Family
285 Active Listings Avg. Price $346,069 Avg. Days on Market 120
10 Pending Listing Avg. Price $280,532 Avg. Days on Market 138
7 Sold Listing Avg. Price $258,000 Avg. Days on Market 68
Jan-Dec Y-T-D 2007 Solds Jan-Dec Y-T-D 2008 Solds
# of Listings Sold: 543 # of Listings Sold: 374
Avg. Sales Price: $ 318,320 Avg. Sales Price: $282,052
Avg. Days on the Market: 88 Avg. Days on the Market: 95
Stats
# of Listings Sold: Down 31%
Avg. Sales Price: Down 11%
Avg. Days on Market: Up 8%
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Bridgeport December 2008 - Single Family
446 Active Listings Avg. Price $251,089 Avg. Days on Market 127
28 Pending Listing Avg. Price $168,371 Avg. Days on Market 86
19 Sold Listing Avg. Price $181,249 Avg. Days on Market 114
Jan-Dec Y-T-D 2007 Solds Jan-Dec Y-T-D 2008 Solds
# of Listings Sold: 520 # of Listings Sold: 385
Avg. Sales Price: $ 249,629 Avg. sales Price: $ 198,104
Avg. Days on the Market: 92 Avg. Days on the Market: 87
Stats
# of Listings Sold: Down 26%
Avg. Sales Price: Down 20%
Avg. Days on Market: Down 5%
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Easton December 2008 - Single Family
62 Active Listings Avg. Price $979,816 Avg. Days on Market 140
1 Pending Listing Avg. Price $435,000 Avg. Days on Market 79
2 Sold Listing Avg. Price $ 578,500 Avg. Days on Market 170
Jan-Dec Y-T-D 2007 Solds Jan-Dec Y-T-D 2008 Solds
# of Listings Sold: 82 # of Listings Sold: 59
Avg. Sales Price: $ 808,786 Avg. sales Price: $ 817,325
Avg. Days on the Market: 114 Avg. Days on the Market: 163
Stats
# of Listings Sold: Down 28%
Avg. Sales Price: Up 2%
Avg. Days on Market: Up 43%
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Westport December 2008 - Single Family
266 Active Listings Avg. Price $2,401,746 Avg. Days on Market 143
4 Pending Listing Avg. Price $1,968,725 Avg. Days on Market 52
8 Sold Listing Avg. Price $1,664,750 Avg. Days on Market 105
Jan-Dec Y-T-D 2007 Solds Jan-Dec Y-T-D 2008 Solds
# of Listings Sold: 405 # of Listings Sold: 246
Avg. Sales Price: $1,689,621 Avg. sales Price: $1,682,875
Avg. Days on the Market: 105 Avg. Days on the Market: 108
Stats
# of Listings Sold: Down 39%
Avg. Sales Price: Even
Avg. Days on Market: Up 3%
