December 16, 2016
Friday’s Government Reports Roundup
- Yesterday the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) released its final “Duty to Serve” rule, which requires Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to support certain segments of the mortgage market that are traditionally underserved by private investors.
- U.S. homebuilders’ confidence soared this month to the highest level in 11 years, reflecting heightened expectations of better sales now and well into 2017. The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo builder sentiment index released Thursday jumped seven points to 70. The last time the reading was at this level was July 2005, during the high-flying days of the last U.S. housing boom.
- In a statement released Wednesday by the Federal Reserve, the FOMC voted unanimously to raise the target range for the federal funds rate from 0.5% to 0.75%, effective Dec. 15, 2016.
