Please enjoy this quick update on what happened this week in the housing and financial markets.
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Consumer prices saw their largest drop ever in April, as the economy reeled from restrictions imposed to control the coronavirus. The CPI excluding food and energy fell 0.4%. |
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Producer prices also tumbled in April, the largest annual decline since 2015. The data could bolster some economists' predictions for a brief period of deflation to come. |
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Initial jobless claims came in last week at 2.981 million. The number is down from 3.176 million the week before, the 6th straight weekly drop. |
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The number of loans in forbearance has continued to grow, reaching more than 4 million between the GSEs and FHA/VA/USDA. This doesn't include jumbo or other privately held loan types. |
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Homebuilders are offering more discounts and free upgrades to attract buyers. Builders are hoping to move more inventory by sweetening the pot. |
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Despite the COVID pandemic and huge unemployment numbers, tenants are keeping up with their rent. More than 80% of renters nationally made a full or partial payment for the month of April. |
