Mark Fleming
@mflemingecon
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Chief Economist @FirstAm. Father and dismal scientist. Runner, biker and beer maker. Views expressed here are personal and not the views of my employer.
Washington DC
Joined July 2012
A New Year’s resolution! The #REconomy Podcast™: What Will it Take for the Housing Market to Rebalance?
blog.firstam.com
The REconomy Podcast™ economists Mark and Odeta examine house price trends, mortgage rate fluctuations and housing supply levels.
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Welcome to the fascinating world of industrial real estate! And there's more to it than just data centers. Listen to me "waxing on" about the absorption dynamics :-) with my colleagues @odetakushi and @XanderSnyderX in the REconomy Podcast™:
blog.firstam.com
In this REconomy Podcast™ episode, discover how industrial real estate is rebalancing as net absorption turns negative after 15 years of growth.
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A great point made by @XanderSnyderX - even if the Fed cuts rates there is, unfortunately, no guarantee that "long-end" rates will follow. But, if done for the right reasons, rate cuts can't hurt!
The market has reacted jubilantly to Powell's comments at Jackson Hole today. Powell mentioned that the balance of risks between inflation and employment "appears to be shifting", suggesting that conditions "may warrant" interest rate cuts. He indicated that, though the economy
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And CME odds of 25bps is over 90% now compared to 75% yesterday. But pick your day and economic release as far as what the market thinks the Fed will do!
Powell cautiously tees up a cut: “The balance of risks appears to be shifting.” While labor markets remain in balance, “it is a curious kind of balance that results from a marked slowing in both the supply of and demand for workers.” “This unusual situation suggests that
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This week in @Compass Intelligence weekly housing market data: Everyone knows that the price pressure is on. Did you know that have been gradually FEWER new listings each week? Sellers are staying away. That implies a cap on inventory growth for the rest of the year. 1/6
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We are at the beginning of a new "more normal" housing market, but this time the reasons for growth will be different. Read on to find out more from @odetakushi : Housing Market Turning Point: Setting the Stage for a New Real Estate Cycle
blog.firstam.com
The 2025 housing market is rebalancing, not busting. Affordability is slowly improving. New-home sales stay strong while existing-home sales lag.
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If only we could build our way out of the housing shortage! In this episode of #REconomy summer school we look at potential solutions... and since its hip to be square.... one solution may be the old-school Sears and Roebuck way!
blog.firstam.com
In this REconomy Podcast™ episode, explore how building more “missing middle” housing could ease the housing affordability crisis in the U.S.
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To rent or to own... the perennial question! But right now, if you are viewing this as a purely financial decision, its better to rent in many markets! See more and the details by market in the latest from my colleague @odetakushi #FirstAmEcon
https://t.co/CfxgQ5VBHT
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Housing starts rose slightly to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.321 million, coming in just above the consensus expectation of 1.3 million. The 4.6% monthly increase was driven by a sharp 31% rise in the volatile multifamily sector, while single-family starts declined by
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In this episode of The REconomy Podcast™ Summer School series we take an in-depth look at the supply side of the housing market and the challenges limiting builders’ efforts to build more homes.
blog.firstam.com
Explore the housing supply shortage with First American economists on The REconomy Podcast™—why it persists and what’s holding builders back.
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Since 2019, nearly nine in 10 newly cost-burdened homeowners have been either younger adults entering the market or seniors aging in place. Read more about the rise in housing cost burden in our latest analysis. The analysis includes interactive dashboards, so that you can check
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Life happens! But that means home selling and buying does too (regardless of rates). In this summer school episode of #REconomy... we break it all down! - Why Life Events Still Drive Home-Buying Demand Despite Affordability Challenges.
blog.firstam.com
On The REconomy Podcast™, economists Mark Fleming and Odeta Kushi explore what drives homebuying decisions and how they shape today’s housing market.
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Inspired by Planet Money's summer school series, we are now doing our own, second year, of REconomy summer school. Ever wonder what a headship rate is? Why housing economics is often more about demographics? Aaaaaand, now you can "watch" the podcast too!
blog.firstam.com
The REconomy Podcast™ Summer School series kicks off with a deep dive into housing demand, who forms households, when, and what defines a household.
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I can 't resist a good Queen/Bowie reference. Check out the latest from @SWilliamsonEcon. Under Pressure: Rising Homeownership Costs Squeeze Housing Affordability
blog.firstam.com
Homeownership costs hit record highs in 2023, averaging $1,700/month and raising concerns about long-term affordability for buyers and owners alike.
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My colleague @XanderSnyderX has a nice summary below of our latest blog post on affordability!
Housing affordability had a rough start to the year. However, affordability improved in February due to slower price growth, a decline in mortgage rates, and positive income growth. Inventory is expected to rise in 2025, which should continue to cool price growth and improve
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While builders benefit from a chronic housing shortage made worse by the “seller’s strike”, they still face supply-side challenges making it difficult to scale up construction to just keep up with growing shelter demand let alone reduce the overall housing stock supply debt.
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then new-home sales is down to the same levels as the early 1990s, about 0.5%, and well below the long-run average of 0.7%. If new-home sales were tracking at the long-run average percentage of total households, then the pace of new-home sales would be almost 950,000!
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676,000 new-home sales today is, relatively speaking, not the same as 676,000 sales in the mid- 1990’s when accounting for the increase in the amount of demand. Instead, if one considers the number of new-home sales as a percentage of the total number of households over time...
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But comparing the number of new homes for sale today to the number is not a good apples-to-apples comparison. Considering that the number of households, the demand for shelter, is constantly growing over time.
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The “mix” of inventory available for sale by stage of construction is normalizing. In February, completed ready-to-occupy inventory increased to 119,000, which is up 35% compared to a year ago.
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Months supply decreased slightly, to 8.9 months, but is still elevated compared to pre-pandemic. In January, There were 500,000 new homes at various stages of completion for sale in February, which is a 7.5% increase compared to a year earlier.
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