Guest Post – Tradition Mortgage’s Weekly Update March 31, 2015

“You take the good, you take the bad.” The Facts of Life. That television series theme song also applies to recent economic news, as housing is a bright spot while economic growth overall remains sluggish.

New Home Sales surged in February, rising 8 percent from January to an annual rate of 539,000 units, while January’s sales were revised higher to 500,000. New Home Sales now stand at their best level since February 2008 and are up nearly 25 percent from the 432,000 recorded in February 2014. The report also showed that the median sales price for new homes was $275,500, up 2.6 percent from a year ago.

Existing Home Sales also rose by a modest 1.2 percent in February, to an annual rate of 4.88 million units, which was just below expectations. Low inventories were said to be a key factor in price growth, which rose at the fastest pace in a year.

However, growth for our economy overall is still sluggish. The final reading on fourth quarter 2014 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was unchanged from the second reading, coming in at 2.2 percent. This was well below the 5 percent recorded in the third quarter of last year. For all of 2014, GDP was 2.42 percent, which is disappointing considering we are six years into our economic recovery. One positive item to note from the report: Consumer spending rose to 4.4 percent, which is the fastest rate since the first quarter of 2006.

The bottom line is that home loan rates remain attractive, and now is a great time to consider a home purchase or refinance.

Jim Krantz
Vice President
NMLS # 761955
Jim.Krantz@TraditionLLC.com
Direct 952.252.4488 / Cell 612.716.9999 / Fax 952.252.4489

Tradition Mortgage LLC
NMLS # 286998
4350 Baker Rd Suite 190 / Minnetonka, MN 55343 / www.TraditionWest.com