Key Economic Indicators – January 28, 2013

  • December existing home sales decreased 1.0% to an annualized rate of 4,940 thousand units. The December figure was 12.8% above the December 2011 figure. The median sales price of existing houses sold was $180.8 thousand, 11.5% above December 2011.
  • December new home sales decreased 7.3% to an annualized rate of 369 thousand units, following a 9.3% increase in the previous month. The December figure was 8.8% above the December 2011 figure.  The median sales price of new houses sold was $248.9 thousand, 13.9% above December 2011.
  • U.S. House prices rose 0.6% on a seasonally adjusted basis from October to November, after holding steady in the previous period, according to the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s (FHFA) monthly House Price Index. For the 12 months ending in November, U.S. prices rose 5.6%.
  • The results of Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey showed fixed mortgage rates moving higher from the previous week. The 30-year fixed mortgage rate averaged 3.42% for the week ending January 24, up from last week when it averaged 3.38%.
  •  Mortgage applications increased 7.0% from a week earlier week, according to data from Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Applications Survey for the week ending January 18.
  • The advance figure for initial claims for unemployment insurance decreased by 5 thousand to 330 thousand in the week ending January 19.
  • The Conference Board index of leading economic indicators increased 0.5% in December, while the coincident index increased 0.2%.

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