New Home Sales, Apple Shares, Mortgage Applications Down

April 27, 2016

Wednesday – April 27

After a weak reading for New Home Sales earlier in the week, signed real estate contracts for existing single-family homes, condos and co-ops rose in March for the second consecutive monthly gain. The National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) reported that Pending Home Sales increased 1.4% last month to the highest level in nearly a year. A spokesperson from the NAR said, despite supply deficiencies in plenty of areas, contract activity was fairly strong in a majority of markets in March.

Shares of Apple are falling in today’s trading after the maker of the popular iPhone reported quarterly earnings that missed estimates across the board. The company said that sales of iPhones sank for the first time ever in the latest quarter. Apple also reported that both revenues and earnings fell last quarter, which is a rare occurrence. The company posted record cash on hand and will use that extra cash to buy back shares, while increasing its quarterly dividend to 57 cents per share.

Mortgage application activity declined in the latest week, this despite the spring buying season being in full bloom. The Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Market Composite Index, a measure of total mortgage loan application volume, fell 4.1% in the latest week. The refinance index fell 5%, while the purchase index decreased 2%. The MBA went on to report that home loan rates edged higher this week to 3.85% from 3.83%, the seconfd straight weekly increase.