What a Wild Ride

Things are supposed to get quiet as the holidays approach. But we had nothing but noise in the markets leading up to the holidays this year. It seemed as if the markets were on a roller coaster as we closed in on the end of the year. For example, the Dow was at 16,321 on October 13 and by December 5, it closed over 17,950. By December 16 the Dow had fallen to below 17,100 and a few days later it was up over 18,000. Meanwhile oil prices and interest rates were just as volatile. The precipitous drop in the price of oil has been discussed previously as the move has brought the price down close to 50% in just over a year.

Interest rates have also moved significantly in the past few months. Two major factors have influenced rates during this time. Stronger job growth has convinced the markets that the Federal Reserve Board will raise short-term interest rates during the first part of next year. At the same time, slower growth overseas and lower oil prices have contributed to a drop in long-term rates -- including rates on home loans. Following the lead of the stock market, long-term rates have drifted when the stock market experienced their downturns and the drop in oil prices, but there has been a lot of volatility on the way. At the same time, short-term interest rates have risen steadily in anticipation of action by the Fed.

So where do we go from here? The fact that short-term rates have risen while long-term rates have fallen this year demonstrates an interesting point. Just because the Federal Reserve Board raises rates, it does not mean that rates on home loans will be rising. The Fed directly controls short-term rates, but does not directly control long-term rates, though they can influence long-term rates significantly. If the markets perceive that the Fed is raising short-term rates in a direct response to the threat of inflation caused by a stronger economy, it is more likely that long-term rates will also rise. But if the markets feel that the Fed is raising short-term rates at a time in which the economic recovery is still in question, then the move in mortgage rates may not be as strong.

Wishing you a happy healthy and prosperous New Year.


Mike

Mike Ervin
Branch Manager/Mortgage Banker
NMLS: 282715
O: 650.735.5261
C: 650.766.8500

Oil Prices and Interest Rates

It was a very interesting time for a meeting of the Federal Reserve Board's Open Market Committee. As we discussed the past few weeks, the increased pace of job growth will cause the economy to expand more quickly and this will make it easier for the Fed to make a decision to raise rates more quickly. On the other hand, there are other factors in play. For example, many world economies are slowing significantly. Our economy is intertwined with the global economy and the Fed must worry whether this slowdown might affect our strengthening recovery.

Oil prices represent another wild card. The magnitude of the drop in the price of oil has been absolutely stunning. The move from $110 per barrel in August of 2013 to less than $60 per barrel by the middle of December represents a decrease of around 50% in a little over a year. Lower oil prices are also good for the economy because of the potential for reduced consumer inflation. This reduced inflationary pressure enables the Fed to be less inclined to raise interest rates.

Not all of the effects of lower priced oil are positive. The energy sector is a significant industry and if the price of oil stays too low, we could lose jobs within this sector. For example, the jobs created in the oil shale industry may be lost if it is not cost effective to extract oil from shale. And going back to the global focus, major nations such as Russia depend upon revenues from oil and their situation is potentially much graver than ours. Of course, the oil factor also influences the thinking of the Fed with regard to rates and when the announcement was made on Wednesday, there was a sense that the Fed wanted to calm the markets somewhat with the use of words such as "patience." If that means continued low rates with low oil prices, we say Happy Holiday!

Mike Ervin
Branch Manager/Mortgage Banker
NMLS: 282715
O: 650.735.5261
C: 650.766.8500

November Jobs Report Released

We had a pretty interesting two weeks leading up to the release of the jobs report. Not only did we have a major holiday, but we had some significant data releases. Plus we had a meeting of major oil producers (OPEC) while oil prices were reaching their lowest levels in the past five years. It was a surprise to some that OPEC kept production levels the same in the face of these lower prices, but other analysts had predicted this because OPEC is not wielding the same pricing power as they did in the previous decades.

What does the price of oil have to do with jobs? In the short run, energy prices are not as important as the effect of the severe weather we had experienced in November. But in the long run, if the price of energy stays low this helps the economy. The more consumers can spend this Holiday Season, the more jobs will be created -- and when people spend less on gas they have more to spend on other purchases.

The employment report showed that our severe November weather was not a factor in hampering the economy. The strong gain in jobs of over 300,000 continued a year in which the economy has added well over 200,000 jobs on a monthly basis. Right now we have a good chance to add the most number of jobs annually since 1999. To this news, we can add that car sales had their best month in a decade and the service sector expanded at its highest rate in nine years. All-in-all it was a strong week for economic data. One would expect that shortly this success will start showing up in the form of higher real estate sales. We could experience a strong spring real estate market.

Mike Ervin
Branch Manager/Mortgage Banker
NMLS: 282715
O: 650.735.5261
C: 650.766.8500

Polar Vortexes and Predictions

We have had some pretty optimistic projections recently from economists. For example, the following is from the Wall Street Journal's monthly survey of economists ...Faster job growth and stronger consumer confidence are already putting the U.S. expansion on a steady trajectory heading into 2015 and falling energy prices are offering another boost... While I share this enthusiasm, we also must remember that absolutely the same predictions were made at the end of last year. What happened? It was the weather. By the time America dug out from all the snow, it seemed the economy was playing "catch-up" all year.

Well, the weather this November reminded us how important Mother Nature can be. Just ask Buffalo, the recipient of five to eight feet (that is feet, not inches) in a week. Of course, they are hoping that winter is over in December and it is not just starting! On the other hand, the weaker start to the economy was not just about the weather. The real estate recovery also took a pause in 2014. The early bad weather hurt, but in reality slower real estate sales were not just about a weaker market. The real estate statistics were pumped up previously by investors buying foreclosures -- many times in bulk.

As foreclosures have decreased, so did these sales. Meanwhile, real estate sales have been increasing steadily during the second half of the year despite the loss of this segment of the business. In essence, the market is normalizing and we fully expect that the first time homebuyer will again replace the investor as the most important segment of the real estate market. It will take some time, but the fundamentals are in place. Meanwhile, this week we get another important reading on the employment sector. This will tell us if we will continue to have momentum heading into the new year and whether the Polar Vortex is providing another temporary respite from the recovery.

Mike Ervin
Branch Manager/Mortgage Loan Officer
NMLS: 282715
O: 650.735.5261
C: 650.766.8500

Happy Thanksgiving

It is hard to believe that another year is just about to pass, but the end of the year holidays are already here. It has been an interesting year. We began with one of the harshest winters ever to hit the United States and it seems as if we are ending the year with the same weather pattern, as the "polar vortex" hit much of the nation in the middle of November. It is interesting that the cold weather hit the same week that there was an announcement of a climate deal between the U.S. and China. How can there be global warming when the weather is so extraordinarily cold? Well, we can't get into the scientific arguments regarding the debate, but we will note that one of the effects of global warming is supposed to be more extreme weather, including precipitation. And these extremes did affect our economy this year.

So, we will not be thankful for the colder weather and extreme storms, but we will be thankful that the economy has moved forward in spite of these obstacles. As a matter of fact, the last employment report was the best evidence that we have had that the economy is getting better. Why do we believe that? Well, the numbers were assessed as disappointing. We think that we have come a long way in order for a month in which the unemployment rate went down and we added over 200,000 jobs to be labeled disappointing. Just five years ago the economy was losing 200,000 or more jobs per month and the economy has not averaged 200,000 jobs growth per month since before the recession.

Sure, there are disappointing statistics associated with the report. There is still a low labor force participation rate and stagnant wage growth, which means that many of the jobs being created are lower paying. However, the solution to both of these problems is the creation of more jobs. When there is a shortage of labor, then wages will increase. And if 200,000 jobs added per month is our "low-point" for the next year, there will be plenty of jobs created which will help these numbers. And continued low interest rates and falling oil prices are two additional things to be thankful for with regard to the economy. Yes, things are not perfect, but when you compare where we are today to five years ago, we are in a much better position to move forward with regard to a healthy economy. If it doesn't snow all winter!

Hoping you and your family have a fabulous Thanksgiving.

Mike

Veterans Day

The election is over. The October employment report has been released. But these important events should not obscure the real importance of this week. Today is Veterans Day, the day we give homage to those who have served our country by defending our freedom throughout our history. We only need to look at what is happening in the Middle East to be reminded as to how important those who have served are to each and every one of us. Many don't realize how extensive the population of veterans is in this country. There are well over 20 million veterans and active military, comprising approximately 10% of the adult population of the United States.

For those in business, this makes veterans a very important demographic. For example, did you know that over 15% of the new home sales in the United States are being financed through the Department of Veterans Affairs VA Loan Program? Veterans also own around 10% of all U.S. businesses and have an income which is approximately $10,000 higher than the average American. So, we should not only thank veterans for serving, but also as veterans come back from overseas, helping them assimilate into society is not only the right thing to do, it makes great business sense.

Of course, we could not completely ignore the events of last week. As for the election, the results are important because we will no longer have a "divided" Congress; however, this does not mean that all gridlock will be removed. The employment report was also newsworthy, as this report followed our strongest month of job creation in quite some time. The numbers released Friday were slightly below forecast, but were still strong and included an upward revision of the job gains for the previous month. Plus, the unemployment rate moved down to 5.8% while the labor force participation rate increased slightly as well. All in all, a report that shows the jobs recovery continues to be on track.

Mike Ervin
Branch Manager/Mortgage Loan Officer
NMLS: 282715
O: 650.735.5261
C: 650.766.8500

Stocks, Bonds and Oil

It is interesting. For years we have gone through a very slow recovery from the recession. Yet the stock market has kept moving up each year for over five years with few interruptions. And now that we seem to be on the verge of gaining economic momentum, the stock market is acting like it needs to take a breather, a correction or something more severe. Why the glum news at a time we should be celebrating? There are plenty of theories. Perhaps the stock market may just need a breather which it has earned. Perhaps it is a "sell on the news" phenomenon. Other theories include the hypotheses that the markets are worried about events overseas or investors are afraid interest rates will rise soon because of the good economic news.


We have had plenty of bad spells in the past five years and the stock market seems to bounce back up each time. On the other hand, if it is a true correction, we have to say that the stock market has earned a breather after five strong years. What is also interesting is that oil prices and interest rates have fallen significantly in tandem with stocks. Lower oil prices are not typically the norm when we have a war going on in the Middle East. And rates should not be lower when the economy starts to accelerate. In this respect, lower rates could be another indication of global concerns.

The truth is that we rarely have markets moving where they are expected to move. Nor can we predict whether any of these numbers will hold. What we can tell you is that lower gasoline prices and lower interest rates are both good for the economy in the short run. Thus, if the economy is about to accelerate, a lower stock market may actually be adding fuel to this recovery. For now we will enjoy the good news regarding rates and oil prices while hoping that stocks are just experiencing a well-deserved rest.

Mike Ervin
Branch Manager/Mortgage Loan Officer
NMLS: 282715
O: 650.735.5261
C: 650.766.8500

If it is all about jobs, then...

For years we have gone through a tepid recovery from a very deep recession. And all along we have indicated that we don't recover from such an event if Americans are not working. Year after year we waited and waited. Well, the wait is over. The recovery in jobs is more than underway, it has arrived. The average of 220,000 jobs added each month thus far this year -- and the unemployment rate dropping below 6.0% -- is just what the doctor ordered in this regard. This is not to say that we are all the way back. Many of the jobs created have been lower paying jobs, which has held back the pace of personal income growth. In addition, the low labor participation rate tells us that if jobs keep getting created, we will have to absorb many returning to the labor market.

On the other hand, the progress we have made will cause a ripple effect throughout the economy. We are on pace to add almost 3 million jobs this year and this will increase consumer spending which will create more jobs. And some of this spending will make the real estate market stronger -- whether it is the purchase of new homes or major renovation projects for existing homes. Already we are seeing the strength in car sales and home improvement projects. But the one area we have not seen strength in this year is within the real estate sector.

More recently, we have seen renewed confidence by builders as new home sales have been ramping up. The bottom line is that we can't have a recovery without the creation of jobs and it is the creation of jobs that will bring us a complete real estate recovery. Yes, we still have a long way to go, but if we keep creating jobs at this rate, the road will become a lot shorter. From there, the only question won't be if interest rates will rise -- but when will they rise and how fast. Right now we have the best of both worlds: more hiring and very attractive interest rates.

Mike Ervin
Branch Manager/Mortgage Loan Officer
NMLS: 282715
O: 650.735.5261
C: 650.766.8500

Nowhere To Go From Here

That is right. We have nowhere to go from here -- and that fact represents good news. Each week the markets watch the first time claims for unemployment to get a reading on the employment numbers. However, that practice may very well have run its course with regard to its importance in the short-term. It is a matter of math. When claims dip below 300,000, as they have for several weeks this year, there is not much room for them to decrease further. A recent article from Bloomberg indicated that we are now at the level of claims not seen since 2006. And there are over five million more people who are participating in today's labor force as compared to 2006.

Indeed, during the three previous expansions, weekly jobless claims averaged around 275,000, which is just below this year's low. Again, we have millions more in the labor force now. However, don't think that we have reached full employment. We have plenty who have exhausted their benefits and represent the long-term unemployed. Others are under-employed, which might mean they are employed part-time but desire to be employed full time. Add this to those who are laid off even in a better economy and there is room for improvement in the employment numbers even if the weekly claims do not move down from here.

Friday's jobs numbers tell us that we are still headed in the right direction with regard to returning to a healthy labor market and ultimately a healthy economy. Not only did the unemployment rate fall below 6.0% for the first time in six years with the addition of almost 250,000 jobs, but there was a significant upward revision of the previous months' numbers, which means the pause in August was not as severe as we originally thought. When the Federal Reserve Board's Federal Open Market Committee meets later this month, these numbers will be on the table for analysis. Until then, it will be interesting to see if the other economic reports for September follow this stronger trend.

Mike Ervin
Branch Manager/Mortgage Loan Officer
NMLS: 282715
O: 650.735.5261
C: 650.766.8500

Turning the Corner

If 2014 was a one mile race, we would now be heading down the last lap. It has been an interesting year. We started with a long, cold and snowy winter. We then began to thaw out, and just as the sun started shining, the world seemed to erupt in crisis. But like many obstacles we have faced during the recovery, from natural disasters to fiscal calamities, we seem to move ahead slowly but surely. The big question is, will the last lap feature us gaining speed during the straightaway or will we be hampered by another road block?

If the year has been like a one mile race, then the recovery from the recession has been a marathon. Actually, 26.2 miles may not describe the trek we have gone through. But like the year, we are coming into the final lap, though this is a much longer lap. If we gain momentum during the last quarter of the year, we will be able to see, but not reach the finish line. This year we have marked a full five years of recovery, one of the longest recoveries from a recession in history, but also one of the weakest. Many predict two years or more before we can be considered fully recovered, but the last lap of 2014 could change that story.

The release of the employment report this Friday will hint of how much speed we will have garnered going into the last lap of 2014. The last report was mildly disappointing but we definitely have seen some momentum built up during the majority of 2014. If the numbers released on Friday include an upward revision of last month's numbers or September's numbers move back towards or over 200,000 jobs added, the one slow report will be seen as nothing more than a pebble in the road instead of a road block. Then we can rev things up and hopefully we don't have a huge snowstorm in November. Can we get a little help, weatherman?

Mike Ervin
Branch Manager/Mortgage Loan Officer
NMLS: 282715
O: 650.735.5261
C: 650.766.8500

The Fed Transition

The Federal Reserve Board is going through quite a transition. Actually, more than one. The first transition is one of secrecy to transparency. In the past we had to guess at what the Fed was thinking. If they were planning a move, they never wanted to leak the news ahead of time because of what the "anticipation" might do to the markets. Over the past several years, they have transitioned to a more open culture, telegraphing potential moves well ahead of time in order to take that surprise factor out of the equation.

The second transition is removing fiscal stimulus from the equation. The financial crisis and ensuing recession was so strong that the level of fiscal stimulus applied was unprecedented -- from record low interest rates to the purchase of hundreds of billions of dollars of Treasuries and mortgages. The Fed has continued to remove the purchase of Treasuries from the equation and they also face the second decision -- when to raise short-term interest rates. Because of the new era of transparency, Chairwoman Janet Yellen has been talking about dates from the time she assumed the seat.

At first, talk of raising rates caused the markets to react as long-term interest rates rose. But as time went on, this effect has diminished. We are not sure if that is because of economic concerns, world-wide conflicts which have flared up or because the markets just got used to the message. The latest meeting of the Fed's Federal Open Market Committee took place last week and the statement released told us that while the Fed thinks conditions are improving, they believe rates should stay as is for a "considerable time." In many ways this statement tells us that there is "more of the same" coming from the Fed, at least for now.

Mike Ervin
Branch Manager/Mortgage Loan Officer
NMLS: 282715
O: 650.735.5261
C: 650.766.8500

Employment Report Analysis

At first blush, it appeared that the jobs report was disappointing. The addition of 142,000 jobs in August was much less than the average of over two hundred thousand for the previous six months. Yet, the day of the report, the stock market reacted positively and interest rates did not fall as expected. What could have caused this "adverse" reaction? To us there are three possibilities. First, the same day as the jobs report, a cease fire was signed in Ukraine. As we have said previously, the world news is over-shadowing our domestic economic news this summer. If the truce holds, this is a positive indicator for the stock market but not necessarily positive for the continuation of lower interest rates.

Secondly, the markets may be betting that the lower number of jobs added might be a one-time occurrence. The jobs numbers are often revised in future months and the markets are not likely to get upset over one report. Now, if we get two or three reports below an average of 150,000 jobs each month, this could be worrisome to the markets. Looking at other indicators such as first time claims for unemployment and the ADP private payroll report, there was no indication that the job creation machine slowed down last month.

Finally, even if the production of jobs does slow down, the markets may not be too upset. Slower job growth might cause the Federal Reserve Board to keep short-term interest rates lower for a longer period of time and nothing would boost the stock market more than the prospect for a continuation of lower rates. This factor would apply if the production of new jobs does not slow any further from here. As we indicated last week, it is a good sign with regard to how far we have come in our recovery for the markets to now consider over 140,000 jobs created in a month a poor performance. Which of these factors is correct? There could be a bit of truth in each theory. You can bet on the fact that the Federal Reserve Board's Federal Open Market Committee will be considering these possibilities as they meet this week.

Mike Ervin
Branch Manager/Mortgage Loan Officer
NMLS: 282715
O: 650.735.5261
C: 650.766.8500

The Best of All Worlds?

The past several years have been anything but ideal with regard to the economy and lifestyle of Americans. We started with a deep recession which included a collapse of home values which were increasing at an unsustainable pace. The way out of the recession was anything but painless. It was slow and tedious at best as the recovery has felt like we were running in slow motion. However, as slow as the recovery has been, it has proceeded over all obstacles and there were plenty of obstacles from natural disasters to political issues and world conflicts. Steadily the recovery plowed ahead.

The two bright spots of the recovery have been stocks and interest rates. We have experienced record low rates for years while the stock market has continued to advance from the depths of the recession. One reason for the success of stocks has been the existence of low rates. For many investors, the returns of leaving money in cash made little sense since there was little or no rate of return with rates so low. Meanwhile, it was assumed that rates, as well as oil prices, would increase as the recovery started "heating up." Thus far, this has not happened. Rates and oil prices have not risen in 2014 even as we have recovered from our latest natural event -- the harsh winter of earlier this year.

As we move into the last phase of 2014, does this mean that we could actually enjoy better times than we thought as the economy moves to the next phase? It may be too much to ask for continued advances in the stock market while still enjoying low rates and stable oil prices -- at the same time that unemployment is dropping towards normal levels. But it is possible as long as the economy does not heat up too fast. The key is economic growth. If the recovery does not roar ahead, but advances at a moderate level for the foreseeable future, perhaps inflation does not become a problem and rates will stay low. So the best of all worlds could be possible and would be a welcome break from the malaise we have experienced for the past several years. Even if only for a short period of time, that would be a nice thought.

Mike Ervin
Branch Manager/Mortgage Loan Officer
NMLS: 282715
O: 650.735.5261
C: 650.766.8500

Oil and Rates

There is an old saying which revolves around the fact that oil and water do not mix. But how about oil and interest rates -- do they mix? The truth is that oil prices and rates have gone lower in tandem this summer. There was a time when the economy could be stopped or started with a change in either energy prices or rates. However, today the effects are not as clear. For example, changes in gas prices don't seem to affect the consumer as much as they did decades ago. There are several reasons for this, but one important factor is the increase in energy efficiencies.

On the other hand, the magnitude of the effect of interest rates does not seem to have lessened, but it is hard to tell with rates remaining so low for the past several years. For example, last year when interest rates started to rise, the real estate market responded by eventually slowing down. Again, the direct effect is not as clear as it always has been. For example, so many in America refinanced at record low rates in the past few years, the rise in rates not only slowed down the pace of refinancing, but also made homeowners more reticent to put their homes on the market. Why leave a home which has such a low mortgage payment? This phenomenon has contributed to a shortage of listings which has in turn contributed to the slowing down of the real estate recovery.

Will the more recent decrease in rates reverse this trend? We really don't think that today's rates are high enough to keep people from selling their house. After all, rates are still close to as low as they have been in our lifetime. What will stimulate real estate is the continued generation of jobs which will increase household growth and a person's confidence to make a move. Job creation may actually cause rates to rise, but as long as the interest rate increases are marginal, they won't keep new households from purchasing their first home or renting a starter home. Meanwhile, lower gas prices and lower rates right now are good news for the economy and should be celebrated while they last.

Mike Ervin
Branch Manager/Mortgage Loan Officer
NMLS: 282715
O: 650.735.5261
C: 650.766.8500

The World is in Focus

There is no doubt that the world has seen more than its share of conflicts this year. We have seen major conflicts in the Ukraine, Iraq, Gaza, Syria, Libya and more. With the amount of turmoil we have seen, the world markets have been pretty solid with our stock market being no exception. By mid-July, the Dow and the S&P were in record territory. In this column we even called it the "Teflon Market" because major news seemed to be shrugged off regularly.

Could this time be different? The Ukrainian crisis has occupied the headlines pretty much all year. Yet, the downing of a civilian airliner has brought the conflict to center stage as many countries, including the U.S., have invoked economic sanctions against Russia because of it's actions in Ukraine. Russia has retaliated with sanctions of their own and now we have an economic cold war in the making. And the markets have reacted negatively to these escalating developments.

Many times analysts have indicated that the stock market is due for a correction as it has been almost three years since the last real correction of at least 10%. Each time we have had a pullback in the past three years the markets have rebounded quickly and this past week we saw at least a moderate rebound. If the Russian crisis escalates, could we be in for a real correction? Only time will tell. However, there is some positive news which has arisen from the stock market's recent international malaise. Long-term rates and oil prices have both headed lower. At a time in which we are receiving positive news with regard to the economic recovery, lower rates and lower oil prices may serve to hasten economic growth. If economic growth accelerates, that is good news for stocks -- but possibly only if rates stay low.

Mike Ervin
Branch Manager/Mortgage Loan Officer
NMLS: 282715
O: 650.735.5261

C: 650.766.8500

Do You Remember Inflation?

 While some may consider this a sarcastic question...we have not had really high inflation in the United States for some time. For example, in the past twenty years the retail inflation rate has averaged approximately 2.25% with an even lower number for the past decade. Two points about this. First, even low inflation rates can cause increases in the cost of living. For example, a 2.25% inflation rate over 20 years will increase the cost of living over 50%. Secondly, though low inflation rates can create issues in the long run, those who are older remember a U.S. inflation rate of near 10% per year from the period of 1973 to 1982. That was real "old fashion" inflation.

So if raging inflation has not been a problem for ten years, why bring it up now? Because the real reason we have had really, really low interest rates for the past ten years is the lack of inflation we have experienced. And if we really want to know when rates are going to go up significantly, we need to watch the data on inflation more closely. The reason rates trend up when we get good economic news is the fact that the markets feel that the Federal Reserve Board will raise short-term rates in response to the threat of inflation.

There are actually two stages here. The Fed has kept short-term rates near zero in response to our deep financial crisis and lackluster recovery. So the first move is to move rates to a low inflation normal. The second move is the one we should worry about in the long-term. That is a move to head off inflationary expectations if the economy heats up. We expect the first move and should worry about the second move. For right now the sale on money to finance cars, houses and investments continues. If we keep creating jobs, we should keep a wary eye on the inflation number because we know the Fed is doing just that when they meet next week.

Mike Ervin
Branch Manager/Mortgage Loan Officer
NMLS: 282715

W.J. Bradley Mortgage Capital, LLC

O: 650.735.5261

C: 650.766.8500

Mid-Year Employment Reading

Mid-Year Employment Reading
We hope that everyone enjoyed the 4th of July Holiday. There were plenty of fireworks during the weekend but the day before the holiday started the government provided their own fireworks with the release of a strong jobs report for the month of June. Most analysts were expecting a decent gain in jobs at just over 200,000 and for the unemployment to remain steady at 6.3%. The numbers were stronger than expected, especially when considering the fact that the previous months of jobs gains were revised upwards.

In June the economy added 288,000 jobs which is robust by anyone's standards. The unemployment rate dipped to 6.1% and the decrease cannot be attributed to people leaving the workforce as the labor participation rate stayed steady. Though these numbers are subject to revision in later months, the fact that ADP released a similar number for private payroll growth the day before just confirmed the fact that the job market is indeed heating up. What does that mean?

This is just what the doctor ordered for the economy. More jobs should translate into higher levels of consumer spending and especially spending on big ticket items such as cars, furniture and houses. A stronger housing market and automobile industry should create more jobs and the virtuous cycle will be created. If job creation continues at this pace, we should expect a pickup in interest rates and the growth in home prices should continue. We know we have said this before -- the combination of low rates and low housing prices will not last forever. While the stock market has been strong, rates have remained low. However, this news might just be the beginning of the end of the nation's sale on money.

Beyond The Numbers

We have received some good news over the past few months regarding employment growth. The creation of jobs is the most important function of the economy. When people can find jobs, this creates confidence. When people are secure in their jobs they tend to spend more. This includes large purchases such as houses and cars. Of course, the real estate sector is another huge factor within our economy. So, the next question is--how good are the job numbers? Here is the good news, May represented the fourth consecutive month of jobs gains over 200,000 and that is the first time that has happened since 1999.

On the negative side, the labor participation rate was 62.8%, which was unchanged from April. This is the lowest rate in decades. We do understand that this number is affected by the number of people retiring and with baby boomers aging there are record numbers retiring. But it is also affected by the fact that the population has been growing. A few weeks ago, we pointed out that the population growth of our country may be poised to present us with a housing shortage in the future. Well, it also means that we must create more jobs than ever before and that has not happened yet.

We lost 8.7 million jobs during the recession. Again, the good news is as of May these jobs have been recovered over the past four years. That is a rate of approximately 180,000 jobs per month. We are now creating jobs at over 200,000 per month. If we can create jobs at a rate of 200,000 to 250,000 per month this would appear to help us catch up with population growth in a few years and lower the unemployment rate further. We believe as more people obtain gainful employment, they will spend more money and this will spur housing and other sectors of the economy which will create more jobs. That is what a virtuous cycle is all about and that is why this "200,000" number is so important.


Mike Ervin
Branch Manager/Mortgage Loan Officer

NMLS: 282715

W.J. Bradley Mortgage Capital, LLC

O: 650.735.5261

C: 650.766.8500

No More Excuses

Over five years ago we suffered the worst recession since the great depression almost 100 years ago. Since then our economic recovery has been the weakest of all recoveries as well. There are many reasons for the weak recoveries. The fact that our real estate market was devastated and needed years to recover was certainly a main factor. But there were other reasons for the stops and starts which were external. We had domestic and world-wide natural disasters from hurricanes and super storms to tsunamis. We will not get into a debate as to whether global warming is causing these extreme weather events but we will acknowledge that they were very, very extreme and caused major damage to populations and property.

There were events that were not weather related, of course. There was the fiscal crisis in Europe and political crises at home. We had wars being fought and terrorist events. Many of these events prolonged the recovery and made us wonder whether we would suffer a double dip recession, which never came. 2014 has certainly not been smooth sailing with our famously cold winter and the crisis in Ukraine. However, we believe our economy has recovered to the point that we no longer talk about slipping back in recession. The drop in the economic growth in the first quarter is a testament to that confidence. Economists shrugged off the down quarter almost universally. So what comes next?

The sun is shining and there is no more cold winter. We are running out of excuses for the economy being so lackluster during a recovery period. The employment report released on Friday showed continued progress in that regard. The last two months has seen a significant pickup in hiring but the employment report also shows how far we need to go. We have recovered all the jobs lost during the recession, but accounting for population growth during the past six years, we have seven million jobs to go. Economists surveyed by CNN/Money indicate that it would take two years or more at this pace for the unemployment rate to reach 5.5% and wage growth is still anemic. The good news? A slow recovery continues to support low interest rates and hopefully the Federal Reserve Board agrees with that assessment when they meet shortly.


Mike Ervin

Branch Manager/Mortgage Loan Officer

NMLS: 282715

W.J. Bradley Mortgage Capital, LLC

O: 650.735.5261

C: 650.766.8500

Anyone Have a Spare Listing?

It really could not be predicted. For years during and after the financial crisis analysts warned that the real estate market would be weighed down by an avalanche of bank-owned properties and short-sales. And these analysts were right, at least for awhile. But quicker than most everyone expected we turned from a buyers' market to a sellers' market in many areas of the country. How can it be that buyers can't find homes for sale when there are still so many foreclosures to deal with?

One reason is that investors have bought every bargain in sight. Those with the money recognize good buys and investor money poured into the real estate sector. Another reason is that home building slowed down to a snail's pace during the recession and we were not building enough properties to keep up with our muted household growth, let alone older homes which had to be replaced. Finally, the most recent long, cold winter put a lid on new listings. This effect we have hypothesized to be temporary and already we are seeing numbers that support this hypothesis.

But there is another reason and this reason is psychological. Most who list their home are "moving up" to a bigger and better home or if they are closer to retirement, they are trading down. However, if they don't believe they can find the home they want, they will obviously be reticent to list. So the dearth of listings is actually causing some not to list. Is this temporary? We believe so. As more homes become available, more will list their homes. We are not looking for a flood, but more of a balanced market. Meanwhile, if you are thinking about selling--this may very well be an opportune time.

 

Mike Ervin

Branch Manager/Mortgage Loan Officer

NMLS: 282715

W.J. Bradley Mortgage Capital, LLC

O: 650.735.5261

C: 650.766.8500

Why Is China So Important to Our Interest Rates?

The past few weeks has seen some major volatility within the stock markets. Some weeks have seen major pullbacks and others we have seen significant bounce-backs. The first ten days of April, the volatility of the markets hit on the downside. One thing which is interesting about this pullback is that it happened as the economy was pulling out of its pause caused by a very cold and harsh winter. For example, the first week in April we saw a stronger employment report and the second week first time claims for unemployment fell to levels not seen for many years.

When stocks drop the analysts are always searching for explanations, yet sometimes there seems to be no logic. One card which keeps coming up in explanations this month is the threat of slower growth in China. So we must ask, why is China so important to us other than it is a huge economy? Certainly at a growth rate of over 7.0%, this is not an economy in trouble. For one thing, the Chinese populace travels overseas to the United States in great numbers -- almost two million per year. In 2012, the Chinese spent almost $9 billion in the United States.

Secondly, China helps keep our interest rates low in two ways. Their low cost of manufacturing lowers cost to our consumers. And the profits these manufacturers produce are eventually invested in US Treasuries. Basically, China is helping to finance our Federal budget deficit. More economic growth and lower rates? These are good enough reasons for us to hope that the growth in China continues. And good enough reasons to fret when it appears that the Chinese growth cycle is abating. So, if you are shopping for a home this week and enjoying the fact that rates on home loans are very low -- don't forget to thank the Chinese, as improbable as that may seem.

 

Mike Ervin

Branch Manager/Mortgage Loan Officer

NMLS: 282715

W.J. Bradley Mortgage Capital, LLC

O: 650.735.5261

C: 650.766.8500

 

It is Finally Happening

For years the slow recovery was hampered by the existence of tighter credit. A vicious cycle was created when the recession caused consumer credit to worsen and at the same time banks tightened up on lending standards. For some time we have been predicting that lending standards in the real estate sector would not loosen up until two factors emerged. Factor one was the stability or recovery of real estate values. It makes sense that lenders would be shy about lending in a real estate sector in which the underlying asset was unstable.

Yet, the real estate markets recovered over the past few years without a significant improvement in lending standards. Why? Some blamed it on new legislation aimed at making lenders more responsible with regard to their lending. But most aspects of the legislation were not implemented until recently. In reality, there was a second aspect we cited over the past few years which has now come to fruition. For the past three years lenders were inundated with refinances because of record low rates. Now with rates still really low but a bit higher than they were, the refinance craze has abated.

It makes sense that lenders would not lower standards while they were overwhelmed with demand. Today, lending standards are loosening because lenders are hungrier. Many national sources for real estate loans have lowered their minimum credit score requirements. And we think that this will flow into other areas of lending such as cars and business loans. This is all part of building a virtuous cycle. Keep in mind that we are not looking for a return to the subprime era or anything close to that. The new legislation we cited makes sure lenders will be more careful. Underwriters are still scouring loans with a fine-tooth comb. But it is interesting that while lenders are implementing the new legislative standards, their requirements are getting somewhat less restrictive.

Mike Ervin

Branch Manager

NMLS: 282715

W.J. Bradley Mortgage Capital, LLC

O: 650.735.5261

C: 650.766.8500

Is It The Weather?

For the past three quarters, the economy has grown at an annual rate of just under 3.5% based upon the preliminary numbers released in late January for the 4th quarter. This growth rate is even more impressive when you consider the fact that we endured a government shutdown for part of the last quarter of 2013. It is estimated that this shutdown knocked approximately 1% off the growth rate for the 4th quarter. A 3.5% growth rate, while not smoking hot, is strong enough to bring down unemployment while not igniting fears of inflation. A pretty good balance.

And this balanced growth is a good indication as to why the stock markets rallied strongly in 2013 while long-term interest rates rose. Now we ask whether this growth rate is sustainable for 2014. We had several weak reports released in January, including the December jobs report and a slowing housing sector. Some have hypothesized that the severe winter weather in December and even worse weather in January is the culprit. If this is the case, the numbers should bounce back--including the stock market and rates, both of which fell in January.

Keep in mind that storms actually can boost some sectors of the economy such as the use of energy. Our heating bills are telling us that. Last week's release of January's jobs report was another mixed bag with the unemployment rate unexpectedly moving down slightly to 6.6% but the total jobs created below forecast at 113,000. It is interesting to see both the number for January and also the revision of the previous months' numbers as there was very little adjustment to the disappointing December release but upwards adjustments in previous months. Weather related slowdown? With regard to jobs creation we certainly hope this is the case. We think everyone is hoping for a warmer February, though it has not started out that way. 

 

Mike Ervin

Branch Manager

NMLS: 282715

W.J. Bradley Mortgage Capital, LLC

O: 650.735.5261

C: 650.766.8500

The First Big Event

The Holidays are just behind us and already we are coming up to the first big economic event of 2014. On Friday the employment report for December will be released. In addition, it is "jobs" week with releases such as Wednesday's ADP payroll report and Thursday's first time claims for unemployment. The stock markets ended the year on a roll and much of this roll was due to economic optimism which arose from strong jobs reports during October and November.

 

This month we not only will be watching the December release, but also potential adjustments to the previous two months' numbers. The unemployment rate fell from just under 8.0% to start 2013 to 7.0% by November. The increased number of jobs created bodes well for overall economic performance and also will help dictate how quickly the Federal Reserve Board will wind down their stimulus programs.

It may well be that market watchers have come to expect stronger jobs reports and any numbers released well short of 200,000 jobs created may cause some consternation in the markets. While stocks may react negatively to a surprise on the downside, this would likely help dampen the rise in long-term interest rates we have been experiencing. In addition, because the jobs report is being released a bit late this month because of the Holidays and the calendar, the February report will come rather quickly.

 

Mike Ervin

Mortgage Banker

NMLS # 252715

C: 650.766.8500

mike@mikeervin.com