This past Friday, the Jobs Report showed 243,000 jobs created, which was much better than expected – I was impressed with the fact that 257,000 private jobs were created — that was much higher than expected. There were upward revisions to November & December added another 60,000 jobs to what was previously reported for those months…adding to the euphoria was a 0.2% decline in the Unemployment Rate, bringing it to 8.3%…the lowest since February 2009.
Unemployment news was not the only good new last week — there was other good news to note last week as well: The Commerce Department reported that Personal Incomes rose in December by 0.5%, above expectations & well above the 0.1% reported in November. This marked the largest increase in nine months!
So……what does all of this mean for the housing market and Raleigh home loan rates?
While Bonds and Raleigh home loan rates did worsen on the good Jobs Report news (remember good economic news often causes money to flow out of Bonds and into Stocks, as investor try to take advantage of gains),Raleigh home loan rates remain near historic best levels. In addition, the problems in Europe remain…and as uncertainty reemerges, US Bonds (including Mortgage Bonds, to which Raleigh Mortgage Rates are tied) will benefit.
The takeaway from all of last week’s news is that the pace of improvement in the labor market is choppy. But the trend is improving over time & this is welcome news for the struggling housing market because as people feel more secure in their jobs, they are more willing to consider making major purchases like a home.
The bottom line is that now is a great time to purchase or refinance. Let me know if I can answer any questions at all for you.
There are just two economic reports due for release this week & with earnings season wrapping up, the Stock and Bond markets will be battling over investing dollars.
• Thursday brings the weekly Initial Jobless Claims Report. Last week people filing for first-time claims fell by 12,000 to 367,000, an encouraging sign now that claims have fallen below that dangerously high level of 400,000.
• On Friday, we’ll see the first reading on Consumer Sentiment for February.
In addition, the Treasury will sell a total of $72 Billion in Notes & Bonds this week.
Remember: Weak economic news normally causes money to flow out of Stocks and into Bonds, helping Bonds and Raleigh home loan rates improve, while strong economic news normally has the opposite result.
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