Rising Housing Prices And Mortgage Rates Outpacing Wage Growth

 

June 5, 2017, 4:30pm EST               Invest Alongside Billionaires For $297/Qtr

 

Last week we looked at the some of the clear evidence that the economy is as primed as it can possibly get for a catalyst to come in and pop growth.That catalyst, despite all of the scrutiny, will be Trumponomics.

At the very least, a corporate tax cut will directly hit the bottom line of corporate America.  And one of the huge drags on demand, structurally, is the lack of wage growth.  And as we discussed, the big winner in a corporate tax cut will be workers/wage growth — a non-partisan tax think tank thinks it can pop wage growth, by as much as doublethe current growth rate.  That would be huge, especially for one of the key pillars of the recovery — housing.Remember, the two biggest drivers of recovery have been: 1) stocks, and 2) housing.  Those two assets have done the lion’s share of work when it comes to restoring confidence. And a lot of other key pieces fall into place when confidence comes back.

On the housing front, over the past year, both mortgage rates and house prices have gone UP – a new dynamic in the post crisis recovery (adding higher rates into the mix).  So owning a house has become more expensive over the past year.  But how much?

Let’s take a look at how that has affected the monthly outlay for new homeowners over the course of the past year.

From March 2016 to March 2017, the average 30 year fixed mortgage went from 3.70% to 4.20%.

The Case-Shiller housing price index of the top 20 markets in the U.S. is up 6% over that twelve month period (the most recent data).  That’s increased the monthly outlay (principal and interest) for new homeowners by 11% over the past year.

Now, with that said, we look at the recent behavior of the 10 year note (the benchmark government bond yield that heavily influences mortgage rates).  It’s been in world of its own — sliding back to seven month lows, while stocks are hitting record highs.  Manipulation?  Likely. As I’ve said before, don’t underestimate the value of QE that is still in full force around the world — namely in Japan and Europe.  That’s freshly printed money that can continue to buy our Treasuries, keeping a cap on interest rates, which keeps a cap on mortgage rates, which keeps the housing recovery and the recovery in consumer credit demand intact.

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