Economic Updates

Existing home sales rose 7.6% in April to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.77 million units from 5.36 million units in March. The inventory of unsold homes on the market rose 11.5% to 4.04 million, an 8.4-month supply at the current sales pace, up from an 8.1-month supply in March.

The Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller 20-city housing price index — on a seasonally adjusted basis — was unchanged in March after a 0.1% decline in February.

The consumer confidence index rose to 63.3 in May from a slightly revised 57.7 in April. Economists had anticipated a reading of 59. The index was benchmarked at 100 in 1985, a year chosen because it was neither a peak nor a trough in consumer confidence.

The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage applications for the week ending May 21 rose 11.3%. Refinancing applications jumped 17%. Purchase volume decreased 3.3%.

Orders for durable goods — items expected to last three or more years — rose 2.9% in April after falling a slightly revised 1.2% in March. The increase was largely due to a jump in demand for commercial aircraft. Excluding volatile transportation-related goods, orders posted a monthly decrease of 1%.

New home sales rose 14.8% in April to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 504,000 units from an upwardly revised rate of 439,000 units in March. Economists had expected a pace of 425,000 units. The April reading was the highest level since May 2008.

Initial claims for unemployment benefits fell by 14,000 to 460,000 for the week ending May 22. Continuing claims for the week ending May 15 fell by 49,000 to 4.61 million.

Upcoming on the economic calendar are reports on construction spending on June 1, pending home sales on June 2 and factory orders on June 3.

Provided by:

Judy Haller

Prospect Mortgage

3985 Prince William Co. Pky., Suite 104
Woodbridge, VA 22192

Office: (703) 590-7132