Market Studies

Citigroup reported Monday profits of $3.9 billion in Q1, just barely edging out last year’s income of $3.8 billion. Gains were more impressive when put next to Q4’s earnings, which disappointed at $2.5 billion. The gain came despite a year-over-year drop in total revenues, which were down 1 percent to $20.1 billion as a result of declines in fixed income markets revenues and lower refinancing activity.

HOPE NOW, a private sector alliance of mortgage servicers, investors, mortgage insurers, and non-profit counselors, released its February 2014 loan modification data. The group reported that an estimated 42,000 homeowners received permanent modifications in the month, including modifications from proprietary programs and the government's Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP).

Two quarterly earnings reports revealed very different results for two major players in the mortgage industry. Wells Fargo and JPMorgan Chase both felt the sting of a shrinking mortgage market, but one bank revealed substantial growth. Wells Fargo reported a record net income of $5.9 billion for the first quarter, an increase of 14 percent from the year-ago quarter and 5 percent from Q4 2013.

After a long, dreary winter, the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors (MAAR) pointed towards signs of renewed optimism in the 13-county Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area. Seller activity rose 5.5 percent to roughly 6,500 newly listed homes in March. Although inventory remains near a 10-year low, the group believes consumers should have more options this year compared to recent years.

As the housing market inches further toward recovery, a curious dichotomy has arisen between urban and suburban growth. Asking prices for homes in densely populated (i.e., high-rise-rich) and urban settings are still rising as the spring buying market catches its stride. It’s the suburbs, however, where population is growing most.

According to a new report from the Warren Group, single-family home sales are up 2.6 percent overall this year in Connecticut, with a 2.8 percent increase in February of this year from last year. Fighting a low inventory this month, the month represents ten straight months of increases in a row, easing fears.

Good news for homebuyers—Freddie Mac reported the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaging a rate of 4.34 percent (0.7 point) for the week ending April 10, a decline from 4.41 percent last week. A year ago at this time, the 30-year fixed was down nearly a full percentage point: 3.43 percent.

Nearly 70 million adults have no emergency savings, while nearly one in four would run out of money in 30 days, according to a new survey put out by NeighborWorks America. The survey found that 22 percent of adults, or roughly 53 million adults, have only enough saved for one month.

Since 1998, second-home mortgages have averaged about 4.76 percent of the total purchase market, but the share is rising, according to Fannie Mae. While the purchase market increased four-fold from 1998 through the bubble years, the second-home mortgage market multiplied by 15 over the same years.

The American Bankers Association (ABA) released the results of its latest annual Real Estate Lending Survey, which clearly show signs of caution among loan officers. According to the ABA, more than 80 percent of bankers surveyed believe that tightened Dodd-Frank rules will restrict credit, thereby narrowing the pool of candidates able to secure mortgages.