Daily News 9/25/14
September 25, 2014
Thursday – September 25
Homeowners gained back $1 trillion in home equity in the second quarter of 2014 from the year earlier period, led by a rise in home prices, reported analytics firm CoreLogic. CoreLogic reported that 946,000 residential properties regained equity in the second quarter though 5.3 million with a mortgage are still in negative territory. Home equity is the value of ownership built up in a home or property that represents the current market value of the house less any remaining mortgage payments.
A government report out this morning showed that orders for products lasting more than three years posted its largest decline on record in August, due to big gyrations in aircraft orders. The Commerce Department reported that August Durable Orders fell by 18.2% after a 22.5% gain in July, which was the highest gain on record. However, within the report, most components were positive. In addition, when striping out volatile transportation, orders were up 0.7%.
The Labor Department reported that Americans filing for first time unemployment benefits rose by 12,000 in the latest week to 293,000. Expectations were calling for a rise to 300,000. Weekly Initial Jobless Claims continue to hover near pre-recession levels as the jobs market regains its footing. The four week moving average of claims, which irons out seasonal abnormalities, fell 1,250 to 293,500. The Labor Department said there were no special factors impacting this week’s initial claims.
