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Here’s the inflation breakdown for July 2024 — in one chart
d3sign | Moment | Getty Images Inflation continued to retreat in July, aided by easing price pressures for consumer staples like food and energy and physical goods like new and used cars. The consumer price index, a key inflation gauge, rose 2.9% in July from a year ago, the U.S. Department of Labor reported Wednesday.…
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A U.S. construction boom is sending rents lower and creating perks for renters
Aleksandarnakic | E+ | Getty Images A construction boom in the U.S. has resulted in lower rents and other benefits for renters. Record-construction activity since the pandemic has increased the supply of empty units, meaning more inventory is available for renters. More multi-family units were completed in June than in any month in nearly 50…
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How to position yourself to benefit from the Fed’s first rate cut in years, according to financial experts
The Federal Reserve could start lowering interest rates as soon as next month, based on the latest inflation data. “We think that the time is approaching,” Fed Chair Jerome Powell said at a press conference after the last Federal Open Market Committee meeting in July. For Americans struggling to keep up with sky-high interest charges, a likely September rate cut may bring some…
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Op-ed: The case for a 40-year mortgage
Sdi Productions | E+ | Getty Images Homeownership has long symbolized the American Dream, embodying stability, wealth creation, and community investment. Yet, for millions of Americans, especially younger generations and first-time homebuyers, that dream is slipping away. Rising home prices, stagnant wages, and restrictive mortgage terms have made it increasingly difficult to take that crucial…
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Brits snap up lower mortgage deals as Bank of England rate cut boosts property market
Richard Newstead | Moment | Getty Images LONDON — Britain’s biggest high street lenders are continuing to slash borrowing costs after the Bank of England’s first interest rate cut in four years sparked a boom in homebuyer activity. Barclays, Halifax, HSBC and NatWest are among the lenders now offering five-year fixed rate mortgages of under 4%, below…
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‘Starter home’ tax breaks, aid for first-time buyers: What to know about Harris’ affordable housing proposals
Democratic U.S. presidential candidate, Vice President Kamala Harris, speaks at an Aug. 10 campaign rally in Las Vegas. Justin Sullivan | Getty Images News | Getty Images Affordable housing is a cornerstone of the “opportunity economy” that Vice President Kamala Harris sketched out last week. Harris’ economic policy pitch included proposals to lower the costs…
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After mini-boom, weekly mortgage refinance demand falls back 15%. Here’s why
A house under construction is seen between completed houses in a new development in Brambleton, Virginia on August 14, 2024. Andrew Caballero-Reynolds | AFP | Getty Images Mortgage rates fell for the third week in a row last week, but the rush to refinance took a breather. Applications to refinance a home loan dropped 15%…
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Home sales rose in July for the first time in five months
A sign is posted in front of a home for sale on August 07, 2024 in San Rafael, California. Justin Sullivan | Getty Images Closed sales of previously owned homes rose 1.3% in July compared with June to a seasonally adjusted, annualized rate of 3.95 million units, according to the National Association of Realtors. That…
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How the 2024 election could impact homebuilder stocks
In this article DHI LEN PHM Follow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNT Shareholder returns for top homebuilders D.R. Horton and Lennar outpaced the wider S&P 500 between August 2014 and August 2024. Analysts downgraded the investment outlook of both companies this summer. However, some investors remain optimistic about the industry’s prospects for performance. Stock Chart…
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Up to $2.4 billion expected in bonds for New Jersey transportation
New Jersey is poised to sell up to $2.4 billion of bonds for its transportation infrastructure, according to a report from Fitch Ratings. The New Jersey Transportation Trust Fund Authority is expected to issue $1.3 billion of transportation system bonds and roughly $1.1 billion of transportation program bonds through a negotiated sale in October, the…
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Dealers question MSRB’s one minute reporting standard
Regulators are once again receiving pushback from dealer groups for continued efforts to move to a one-minute trade reporting standard, where criticisms range from questioning why such a proposal could ever work in fixed income markets to begin with, to constructive advice on how to further strengthen the exceptions they have proposed. This recent round…
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Kentucky county school board approves $87 million in bonds
The Warren County Board of Education in Kentucky approved issuance of $87 million in general obligation bonds last week. These will be among the first GO bonds issued by a Kentucky school district since the state government passed a law allowing them to sell GOs in April, to give school districts a method to address…
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Munis little changed, strong technical picture
Municipals were little changed Thursday as U.S. Treasury yields rose and equities ended down. This year’s summer technical picture has been stronger than 2023, said AllianceBernstein strategists. Total returns for June through August last year were –0.04%, with August wiping out June and July gains as UST yields “jumped” and muni yields moved higher, they…
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Far West sees first half jump in bond sales, buoyed by California
Mirroring national trends, most states in the Far West enjoyed a double-digit jump in municipal bond issuance in the first half of the year as market conditions for borrowers improved. Issuance across the nine-state region totaled $49.7 billion, up 28.3% from $38.7 billion over the same period last year, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.…
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Senate Banking Committee facing uncertain future
The Senate Committee on Banking Housing and Urban Affairs is facing major changes in its makeup depending on the outcome of the election, especially if Chairman Sherrod Brown, D – Ohio,loses his race. “The committee is filled with senior members, so I assume the likes of Sens. Jack Reed and Elizabeth Warren will push for…
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Nevada city angling for state’s first toll road
Nevada would get its first toll road under a public-private partnership floated by the city of Sparks. State lawmakers would need to approve the move, as Nevada law currently bans fees on roads that are part of P3s. The city manager of Sparks, located just east of Reno, has proposed a 13-mile toll road that…
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Capital improvements will lead to fiscal recovery, WAPA says
Major infrastructure improvements will aid the U.S. Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority’s finances in the coming months and years, officials said. WAPA is under extreme financial pressure, according to board members, and its electric system revenue bonds were rated CC, before Fitch Ratings withdrew the rating in December. The Federal Emergency Management Agency approved…
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Texas speeds ahead with plan to end P3 toll lanes agreement
The end is near for a 52-year public-private partnership that built a managed lanes toll road project in the Houston area, with the Texas Department of Transportation announcing Friday the state intends to take over the project’s operation in October. The move came after financing for the P3 termination was cleared Thursday by the Texas…
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After Powell speech, muni, UST yields fall; $8.8B on tap led by California GOs
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s speech in Jackson Hole Friday removed any uncertainty of a rate cut at the Fed’s September meeting, pushing U.S. Treasury yields lower on the short end, with municipals following suit, while stocks rallied on the news. “Powell has rung the bell for the start of the cutting cycle,” said Seema…
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Ikea launches secondhand marketplace to compete with eBay
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