ONE-TWENTY TWO: Trading Financial Markets
Exploring the poetry in financial markets for students of money and economy since the year 2000.
Housing Market Intro and Summary In my last Housing Market Review, I called the housing slowdown a “reality check.” That reality is settling into all corners of the market. With mortgage rates resuming their surge over the past two months, the go-forward picture has dimmed further for the housing market. It seems likely the housing … Read more
Housing Market Intro and Summary A potential peaking in mortgage rates may be the only good thing to say about today’s housing market. Sales continue to slide, input costs remain high, affordability continues to decline, and builder sentiment sinks lower and lower. The reports from August tell a consistent story of a steepening housing downturn. … Read more
Housing Market Intro and Summary Talk of an imminent recession has almost reached a feverish pitch. Accordingly, it is easy to find fears and expectations for an imminent housing crash. The crash watch is morbid as it relies on desperate home owners falling behind on mortgage payments and/or burdened by sinking equity to exit the … Read more
Housing Market Intro and Summary A month ago, housing-related stocks managed to stabilize despite deteriorating data. Reality caught up in June with a fresh round of selling in the stocks of home builders. A surprising jump in new home sales provide some relief for an otherwise on-going din of negative housing news. The National Association … Read more
Housing Market Intro and Summary Housing starts have remained above pre-pandemic highs while new home sales have spent much of the last year below pre-pandemic highs. In April, new home sales finally dropped back to the early pandemic trough. The South is even at pandemic era lows. The resulting mismatch between starts and sales has … Read more
Housing Market Intro and Summary In “Marching Under the Shadow of Recession Fears – Housing Market Review” I spent some time discussing the impact of the Fed’s move to normalize monetary policy. That impact continues to ripple through the housing data. Yet, individual home builders are not yet reporting much impact from rising rates. They … Read more
Housing Market Intro and Summary An aggressively hawkish Federal Reserve has changed the game for the housing market. After falling behind the curve and failing to start the rate hike cycle last year, America’s central bank is now desperately scrambling to catch up without causing a recession. The housing market is ground zero for the … Read more
Housing Market Intro and Summary The story of housing remained relatively steady for most of the year: low inventory, rising prices, strong demand, low interest rates, and the desire for more space, especially in the suburbs. In my last Housing Market Review, I explored the market as a nexus of economic recovery and inflation. In … Read more
Housing Market Intro and Summary The home builder stock buying season started on a firm foundation. November delivered strong follow-through across a broad range of housing-related stocks even as the housing data settles into a period of normalization. Demand for new and existing homes is well off last year’s heated levels. Supply remains extremely tight … Read more
Housing Market Intro and Summary The Spring selling season looked like it started strong for new home sales. The data for April reveal a story evolving differently. Absolute inventories rose for both existing and new homes and yet sales declined. Housing starts also suffered a setback. Median prices of homes soared, especially for new homes, … Read more