Household Finance includes blogs about personal income, consumer credit, household balance sheets, and mortgage interest rates.
Total outstanding U.S. consumer debt stood at $5.10 trillion for the third quarter of 2024, increasing at an annualized rate of 3.28% (seasonally adjusted), according to the Federal Reserve’s G.19 Consumer Credit Report. In general, consumer debt has been slowing over the past two years,…
The Fed cut the short-term federal funds rate by an additional 25 basis points at the conclusion of its November meeting, reducing the top target rate to 4.75%. However, while the Fed noted it is making progress to its 2% inflation target, it did not…
In October, mortgage rates reversed their recent downward trajectory, returning to levels two months earlier. According to Freddie Mac, the average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage increased 25 basis points (bps) from September to 6.43%. The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage saw an even steeper increase…
The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume by the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) weekly survey, decreased 13.9% month-over-month on a seasonally adjusted (SA) basis due to higher mortgage rates. This decline was reflected in both the Purchase and Refinance Indices, which…
Personal income increased by 0.3% in September, following a 0.2% up in August and a 0.3% increase in July, according to the most recent data release from the Bureau of Economic Analysis. The gains in personal income were largely driven by increases in wages, salaries,…
The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume by the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) weekly survey, rose 18.4% month-over-month on a seasonally adjusted (SA) basis, driven primarily by a surge in refinancing activity. Compared to September 2023, the index increased by 47%….
In September, mortgage rates maintained their downward trajectory, returning to levels last seen two years ago. According to Freddie Mac, the average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage fell to 6.18%, a decline of 32 basis points (bps) from August. The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage saw…
