Housing markets

Mortgage rates fell back toward their all-time low this week, increasing purchasing power for homebuyers. But the lack of homes for sale drives up prices and reduces affordability, according to Freddie Mac.

More defaults will lead to an increase in distressed sales, and that will drive down prices, CoreLogic said.

Home starts fell more than forecast in August, reflecting less construction of apartments and a decline in the tropical storm-hit South, representing a pause in momentum for a housing market that's been a key source of fuel for the economy.

This proposed Libor replacement is an imaginary, backward-looking benchmark dreamed up by the economists at the Fed with no discernible market.

Blackstone Group, which led Wall Street's initial foray into the single-family rental business, is making a new investment in suburban houses at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic is pressuring traditional commercial real estate.

Mortgage application volume decreased 6.5%, falling for the second consecutive week with refinance activity at its lowest since early July, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

As interest rates tumbled throughout July, prepayments climbed to the highest monthly rate since 2004, but 90-days-or-more delinquencies were on the rise from June, according to Black Knight.

Rising equity levels lifted borrowers across the spectrum in the second quarter, according to Attom Data Solutions.

Rates are forecasted to remain at the current low levels for the rest of 2020, driving steady refinance volume.

Nearly 12 million renters could be served with eviction notices in the next four months. And in some cities, like New York and Houston, more than a fifth of renters say they have “no confidence” in their ability to pay next month.