A recent study from Freddie Mac turned up some discouraging results to throw some cold water on economists' high hopes: The job fields that are expected to grow most in the coming years happen to have some of the lowest homeownership rates.
Read More »January’s Payroll Additions Beat Forecasts; Unemployment Rate Inches Upward
The unemployment rate, which is measured from a separate household survey, ticked up slightly to 5.7 percent from December's 5.6 percent, reflecting an increase in the number of Americans looking for work. After accounting for annual adjustments to population controls, BLS said the civilian labor force rose by 703,000 in January, bringing the labor force participation rate back up to a still-low 62.9 percent.
Read More »Private Sector Sees Solid Job Gains for January Despite Slower Growth
ADP Research Institute reported the addition of 213,000 private sector jobs for the month of January on a seasonally-adjusted basis in its January 2015 National Employment Report released this week.
Read More »Unemployment Rate Falls, Payrolls Increase in Most Metro Areas
Continued labor market improvements may bode well for the housing market for the coming year, since housing relies on steady nationwide employment to flourish, according to some economists' predictions. The national unemployment rate continues to drop – December's rate of 5.4 percent is a decline of 1.1 percentage points from the same month a year earlier.
Read More »Despite Slight Downturn, Consumer Sentiment Still at Highest Level in 11 Years
According to a report from the group, more consumers reported improvements in their finances in January than any other time in the past decade, and four in 10 cited income gains as the primary reason. Notably, more of those gains are being reported among households with incomes under $75,000, a group that has seen relatively little of the recovery so far.
Read More »Freddie Mac: Indicators Show More Stability in Housing Market
The index tracks current gauges of purchase applications, payment-to-income ratios, on-time mortgages, and employment and measures them against their long-term stable ranges. A reading between 80 and 120 is considered to be a sign of a stable market.
Read More »Unemployment Rate Falls in 42 States Monthly in December
The latest improvements in regional and state employment statistics across the United States are keeping in line with the latest drop in the nation's unemployment rate (down to 5.6 percent in December) – and in line with analysts' assessments of consistently improving economic and labor conditions.
Read More »Brighter Outlook for Economy, Job Market Push Consumer Confidence to Seven-Year High
The survey's index measuring sentiment about present-day conditions rose more than 10 points from December, hitting 112.6, the Conference Board said. The number of respondents saying business conditions are currently good rose nearly four points to 28.1 percent, while the share of those saying jobs are plentiful climbed nearly three points to 20.5 percent.
Read More »Leading Economic Indicators Advance for Fourth Month in a Row
Despite recently seeing their strongest year in more than half a decade, housing starts are still running below their long-term average of about 1.5 million annually—and that situation isn't expected to normalize for at least another few years, if economists' forecasts are right.
Read More »Fueled by Lower Gas Prices, Consumer Sentiment Reaches Highest Level in a Decade
According to the group conducting the confidence survey, January's increase—which lifted the index to its highest level since 2004—was driven by an improvement in personal finances, with more consumers reporting increases in household income than any time in the past decade. They're also more optimistic about the labor outlook as job growth continues on a steady track.
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