Low Mortgage Rates Sustain Improving Housing Markets | Chappaqua Real Estate

Freddie Mac released its Multi-Indicator Market Index® (MiMi®), showing two additional metro areas — Indianapolis, Indiana, and Columbus, Ohio — entering their historic benchmark levels of housing activity.

The national MiMi value stands at 85.1, largely unchanged from last month, indicating a housing market that’s on the outer range of its historic benchmark level of housing activity with a +0.14 percent improvement from June to July and a three-month improvement of +1.24 percent. On a year-over-year basis, the national MiMi value improved +4.70 percent. Since its all-time low in October 2010, the national MiMi has rebounded 43 percent, but remains significantly off its high of 121.7.

News Facts:

• Thirty-eight of the 50 states plus the District of Columbia have MiMi values within range of their benchmark averages, with Utah (97.5), Hawaii (96.6), Montana (96.5), Colorado (96) and Oregon (95.8) ranking in the top five with scores closest to their historical benchmark index levels of 100.
• Seventy-nine of the 100 metro areas have MiMi values within range, with Los Angeles, CA (99.5), Salt Lake City, UT (100.6), Provo, UT (98.9), Honolulu, HI (98.7) and Nashville, TN (101.6) ranking in the top five with scores closest to their historical benchmark index levels of 100.
• The most improving states month over month were Illinois (+1.72%), Nevada (+1.36%), Florida (+1.20%), Alabama (+1.14%) and South Carolina (+1.00%). On a year-over-year basis, the most improving states were Florida (+10.03%), Oregon (+9.49%), Colorado (+9.09%), New Jersey (+8.64%) and Tennessee (+8.54%).
• The most improving metro areas month over month were Lakeland, FL (+2.13%), Youngstown, OH (+1.92%), Chicago, IL (+1.73%), Orlando, FL (+1.63%) and Las Vegas, NV (+1.61%). On a year-over-year basis, the most improving metro areas were Orlando, FL (+16.20%), Tampa, FL (+13.03%), Lakeland, FL (+13.02%), Chattanooga, TN (+12.89%) and Palm Bay, FL (+12.47).
• In July, 32 of the 50 states and 75 of the top 100 metros were showing an improving three-month trend. The same time last year, all 50 states and the top 100 metro areas were showing an improving three-month trend.

Quote attributable to Freddie Mac Deputy Chief Economist Len Kiefer:

“Nationally, MiMi in July was largely unchanged for the third consecutive month at 85.1, yet marking a 4.7 percent year-over-year increase. Despite rising house prices, the majority of housing markets have sustained their momentum due in large part to low mortgage rates. For example, purchase applications, as measured by MiMi, were up more than 17 percent year over year in July and remaining at their highest level since December 2007.”

The 2016 MiMi release calendar is available online.

MiMi monitors and measures the stability of the nation’s housing market, as well as the housing markets of all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the top 100 metro markets. MiMi combines proprietary Freddie Mac data with current local market data to assess where each single-family housing market is relative to its own long-term stable range by looking at home purchase applications, payment-to-income ratios (changes in home purchasing power based on house prices, mortgage rates and household income), proportion of on-time mortgage payments in each market, and the local employment picture. The four indicators are combined to create a composite MiMi value for each market. Monthly, MiMi uses this data to show, at a glance, where each market stands relative to its own stable range of housing activity. MiMi also indicates how each market is trending, whether it is moving closer to, or further away from, its stable range. A market can fall outside its stable range by being too weak to generate enough demand for a well-balanced housing market or by overheating to an unsustainable level of activity.