The Federal Reserve’s Open Market Committee will release the minutes of its May 3 meeting today at 11 am Pacific Time. Its statement after that meeting was more hawkish than expected. The Fed dismissed the slowdown in first-quarter GDP growth as “transitory.” The minutes should show the Fed’s plans for another interest rate hike at its policy meeting in the middle of June.
The National Association of Realtors reports sales of existing homes for April ran at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.57 million as thin inventory holds back demand. It was down 2.3% compared to March which hit a 10-year high, though 1.6% higher compared to April 2016. Inventory’s 9% lower than a year ago and at the current sales pace there is 4.2 months of supply. Properties were on the market for an average 29 days from listing to contract, the lowest since the Realtors began tracking in 2011. That’s pushing prices higher. The median national sales price was $244,800 up 6% compared to a year ago and the 62nd-straight month of annual price gains.
Serving the West Side first, I am Bill Roller of BR Capital for 1360 KUIK.
