Mortgage Rates Hit Lowest Point in 30 Years; Watch Homebuilders, REITs
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According to data from Freddie Mac Thursday, rates on 30-year mortgages fell to 3.67 percent, the lowest levels since 1971. The average rate on a 15-year mortgage slipped from 2.97 percent last week to 2.94 percent in the most recent week.
The drop comes as nonfarm payrolls added 69,000 in May, according to a June 1st report. The number was down from additions of 77,000 in April. The May adds were the lowest in a year, the Labor Department said.
10-year Treasury yields fell to under 1.5 percent for the first time since the nonfarm report. Both jobs numbers and low yields are benchmarks for stabilization in the U.S. housing market.
On Wednesday, the Mortgage Bankers Association mortgage index rose 1.3 percent, reversing a 1.3 percent drop the prior week.
Traders might want to watch various homebuilders like PulteGroup (NYSE: PHM), Toll Brothers (NYSE: TOL), Lennar (NYSE: LEN), and Hovnanian Enterprises (NYSE: HOV) (which just reported swinging to Q2 profit on Wednesday). The ETF on the trade is iShares Dow Jones US Real Estate (NYSE: IYR), though the SPDR S&P Homebuilders ETF (NYSE: XHB) should also be kept in focus.
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The drop comes as nonfarm payrolls added 69,000 in May, according to a June 1st report. The number was down from additions of 77,000 in April. The May adds were the lowest in a year, the Labor Department said.
10-year Treasury yields fell to under 1.5 percent for the first time since the nonfarm report. Both jobs numbers and low yields are benchmarks for stabilization in the U.S. housing market.
On Wednesday, the Mortgage Bankers Association mortgage index rose 1.3 percent, reversing a 1.3 percent drop the prior week.
Traders might want to watch various homebuilders like PulteGroup (NYSE: PHM), Toll Brothers (NYSE: TOL), Lennar (NYSE: LEN), and Hovnanian Enterprises (NYSE: HOV) (which just reported swinging to Q2 profit on Wednesday). The ETF on the trade is iShares Dow Jones US Real Estate (NYSE: IYR), though the SPDR S&P Homebuilders ETF (NYSE: XHB) should also be kept in focus.
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