Just 14% of the economists surveyed by Wolters Kluwer expect the Federal Open Market Committee’s next short-term rate reduction to take place at its January meeting. Processing Content Overall, the Blue Chip Economic Indicators panel consensus is for two cuts during this year to the Fed Funds Rate and none next year, with almost no […]
Economists forecast just 50 basis points of Fed cuts in 2026 Read More »
Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte was a driving force behind the Trump administration’s decision to subpoena the Federal Reserve, according to people familiar with the matter, intensifying pressure on the central bank as President Donald Trump prepares to pick a new Fed chief. Processing Content Some of Trump’s allies were alarmed by the
Bill Pulte seen as key instigator behind Powell subpoena Read More »
For the past several years, the U.S. housing market has faced an unusual constraint: not a lack of buyers, but a lack of sellers willing — or able — to move. Millions of homeowners remain “rate-locked,” holding mortgages originated in 2020–2022 at interest rates between 2% and 4% (Federal Housing Finance Agency; Freddie Mac Primary
The $2–4% mortgage trap is freezing housing: Defeasance may be the way out Read More »
The cost of home insurance in the United States rose by ~89% between 2014 and 2025, as rapidly climbing home prices, more frequent extreme weather events and inflation impacted insurers and homeowners. 1 ICE analysts share key insights from their recent 10-year study into the forces propelling rising insurance costs across the nation. Over the
Why U.S. home insurance costs have leapt in the past decade Read More »
The Department of Justice served the Federal Reserve with grand jury subpoenas on Friday, threatening a criminal indictment over Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s Congressional testimony last summer, Powell said Sunday. The testimony was about the Fed’s $2.5 billion renovation of its D.C. headquarters, but Powell said in a video released on the Federal Reserve website
DOJ opens criminal investigation into Federal Reserve and Powell Read More »
Year-over-year housing inventory growth has slowed to single digits, from 33% at one point last year to 9.99%. 2026 is off and running, and we had another crazy week of housing headlines, from Trump announcing a ban on Wall Street investors buying single-family homes to directing the GSEs to buy mortgage-backed securities. But what caught
The impact of lower mortgage rates on housing inventory Read More »
Jobs Friday came and went without much reaction in bond yields because the labor market isn’t breaking, nor is it getting stronger. Mortgage rates dropped into the 5s for a short time on Friday as a result of Trump’s earlier announcement directing the GSEs to buy $200 billion in mortgage backed securities. The 10-year yield
December jobs data continues to support lower mortgage rates Read More »
News that the proposed merger between Compass and Anywhere would close this week came as a surprise to many in the industry, especially those who were anticipating a robust antitrust review of the deal. Several news outlets are reporting that antitrust regulators were blocked from a deeper investigation into the deal by officials higher up in
WSJ: DOJ leadership halted antitrust review of Compass–Anywhere deal Read More »
President Donald Trump announced plans to ban large institutional investors from buying single-family homes earlier this week, arguing the move would ease competition for families and improve housing affordability. The proposal has reignited a long-running debate over the role Wall Street-backed landlords play in the housing market — and whether restricting them would meaningfully lower
Real estate leaders weigh in on potential ban on large investors Read More »
Elon Musk, the billionaire CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, stoked debate about the future of retirement savings by saying that in the coming years, traditional retirement planning could become “irrelevant” amid technological advances. “One side recommendation I have is: Don’t worry about squirreling money away for retirement in 10 or 20 years,” Musk said on
Elon Musk says retirement savings could become ‘irrelevant’ Read More »