Months of heated debates between Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton will come to a head on Tuesday, November 8, when the nation will choose one or the other to be the next president.
Neither candidate has said much about housing policy; during the first debate between the two in late September, Clinton resurrected a charge she made against Trump earlier this year: “Donald was one of the people who rooted for the housing crisis. He said, back in 2006, 'Gee, I hope it does collapse, because then I can go in and buy some and make some money.' Well, it did collapse.”
Trump responded to the accusation by saying, “That's called business, by the way.”
While Clinton has not spoken explicitly about housing policy, her choice of Gene Sperling as one of her top economic advisors may indicate which way she wants to go. Sperling was the co-author of a white paper for the Urban Institute earlier this year that proposed replacing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac with a private corporation.
Trump told an audience at the National Association of Home Builders’ Midyear Meeting in Miami earlier this year that overregulation has hurt the economy, and if elected he plans to issue a moratorium on agency regulation. He has stated at times during his campaign that he would like to eliminate Dodd-Frank in particular.
Furthermore, Trump has stated that he plans to discontinue funding of at least some government housing programs and work to ease the current regulatory framework if elected. He has specifically alluded to the possibility of eliminating The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Clinton shared via her website that she plans to “reduce barriers to lending in underserved communities,” and “support housing counseling programs.” She has also noted that if elected she will “provide the resources necessary to overcome blight, giving communities a chance to rebuild and renew with new businesses, new homeowners, and new hope.”
Quicken Loans—Home Price Perception Index and Home Value Index for October 2016, Tuesday, November 8
Quicken Loans will release its Home Price Perception Index (HPPI) and Home Value Index (HVI) for October on Tuesday, November 8. In September, values were 1.26 percent less than what homeowners estimated, down from the 1.56 percent gap in August.
Quicken’s home value index for September found that home values dropped 0.28 percent from August to September, but increased by a robust 7.78 percent since September 2015. The drop in values comes after four straight months of increases.
“This small decrease in home values is not a signal of a turning tide, it just shows the volatility that can come with changing seasons,” said Quicken Loans chief economist Bob Walters. “As the summer came to a close, the intense competition for available homes began to abate and home values dipped as a result. It’s important to focus on the annual picture. The strong yearly growth negates monthly changes and shows we are moving in the right direction.”
This week’s schedule
Tuesday, November 8
U.S. Presidential Election
Quicken Loans—Home Price Perception Index and Home Value Index for October 2016