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March 2014 U.S. Economic Fundamentals

Ally

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News articles for March 2014.
 

Ally

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Existing home sales drop in January while prices continue to grow





WASHINGTON (February 21, 2014) ` Existing-home sales fell in January to the lowest level in a year-and-a-half, but ongoing inventory shortages continue to lift prices in much of the U.S., according to the National Association of RealtorsÂ.





Total existing-home sales[sup]1[/sup], which are completed transactions that include single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops, dropped 5.1 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.62 million in January from 4.87 million in December, and are also 5.1 percent below the 4.87 million-unit pace in January 2013. Last month`s level of activity was the slowest since July 2012, when it stood at 4.59 million.





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No bubble for Houston's economy - yet





Is Houston experiencing another classic bubble?





In the short term, "No."





That's the view of BBVA Compass economist Boyd Nash-Stacey. In an interview with the Houston Business Journal, Nash-Stacey cited low unemployment, diversification and growth moderation as positive indicators that the Houston economy is not at risk of overheating.





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Labour force participation hits record low for Americans in their 20's





(CNSNews.com) - The labor force participation rate in 2013 for Americans in their twenties hit the lowest level recorded since 1981, when the Bureau of Labor Statistics started releasing employment data on people in the full age bracket of 20 through 29. The labor force participation rate for people ages 20 through 24`which BLS has been tracking since 1948`hit a 42-year low in 2013.





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The dozen regional powerhouses driving the U.S. economy





At night, satellite images show a string of near-constant light along the cities of the U.S. East Coast. Urban growth and sprawl have created a map where Washington blends into Baltimore, and on through Philadelphia, Trenton, New York, Hartford, Providence, and Boston.





The concept of mega-regions dates back to 1957, when the economic geographer Jean Gottman coined the term `megalopolis` to describe the emerging economic hub that stretched from Boston to D.C. The term came to be applied to a number of regions, including the vast Midwestern megalopolis that extends east from Chicago through Detroit and Cleveland and south to Pittsburgh, which Gottman dubbed `Chi-Pitts,` and many more across the United States and around the world. More than just a collection of cities or one giant city, a mega-region is greater than the sum of its parts.





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Why are Canadian investors so interested in Washington real estate





Developers of the Southwest Waterfront toured the globe in search of investors willing to back their project: the Middle East, Europe, China and other parts of Asia among them.





They found a taker in Canada.





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Is rising housing wealth great news for spending?





The Federal Reserve reported yesterday a continued rise in home values, offering a boost to household wealth. From 2006 to 2011, housing wealth fell from $23 trillion to $16 trillion, a loss that devastated the U.S. economy. Our research estimates that almost half of the decline in spending during the Great Recession can be attributed to the decline in house prices.





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There's no housing bubble, but places like California look frothy





Have the nation`s rapidly rising home prices thrown us back into a housing bubble? Fortunately for the economy ` if unfortunately for buyers who`ve been frustrated by the rebound in home prices
http://http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303636404579397203244695022` the answer is no. But some of coastal markets are starting to look frothy. California: We`re looking at you (you too, Florida).





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U.S. pending home sales fall to lowest level since 2011





The number of contracts to buy previously-owned U.S. homes fell in February to the lowest level in more than two years, a sign the housing sector has yet to shake off the impact of higher interest rates and a harsh winter.





The National Association of Realtors said on Thursday its pending home sales index, based on contracts signed last month, fell 0.8 per cent to 93.9 in February. That was the lowest level since October 2011.





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U.S. jobs market dropouts increasingly likely to stay out





(Reuters) - A growing number of Americans quitting the labor force are likely gone for good, offering a cautionary note to the Federal Reserve as it tries to gauge how tight the jobs market is and how quickly to raise interest rates.





For a long time, data suggested a significant portion of the decrease in labor force participation was because many job seekers had grown frustrated with their search and had given up looking. If the job market tightened enough, the thinking went, these Americans would be lured back to hunt for work again.





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The hidden truth in unemployment stats





Have you seen the numbers lately? We should be celebrating in the streets! Recent economic performance has driven unemployment rates down to levels that many believed would not be seen for years to come. So why doesn't it feel that way? Is everyone missing the greatest development in the world economy in years, or is there some good reason for deferring the big party?





Decline in the unemployment rate has been no more dramatic than in the U.S. From late 2008 to mid-2009, the rate nearly doubled, from five percent just under 10%, with risk scenarios seeing as much as 10.5%. Since then, the unemployment rate has declined remarkably, currently at 6.7% and on a decided downward trend. The speed of decline should have economy-watchers of all kinds and business planners alarmed about impending labour shortages. But they aren't.





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17% of homes with a mortgage seriously under water





Fully 9.1 million U.S. residential properties were seriously underwater, representing 17% of all properties with a mortgage in the first quarter, according to RealtyTrac
`s U.S. Home Equity & Underwater Report for the first quarter of 2014.





To be seriously underwater, the combined loan amount secured by the property is at least 25% higher than the property`s market value. The first quarter negative equity numbers were down to the lowest level since RealtyTrac began reporting negative equity in the first quarter of 2012.





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