| Jobs report and CPI report delayed due to government shutdown – The September jobs report was not released last Friday as scheduled, and the September CPI report that was expected to be released on Wednesday was also delayed due to the government shutdown. These reports are essential to determine the strength of the economy and for important decision making by the Federal Reserve, who have an interest rate meeting on October 28 and 29. The CPI report is also needed to calculate increases in Social Security benefits. It was announced last week that some workers were called back to work at the Bureau of Labor and Statics to get the CPI report done. Nevertheless, it was not ready on Wednesday as planned and an announcement was made that the government was shooting for Friday, October 24th to release the CPI report. No announcement was made regarding the jobs report.
Stock Markets recovered from last Friday’s sell-off – The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed the week at 46,190.61, up 1.6% from 45,478.60 last week. Year-to-date, it is up 3.7% from 44,544.66 on December 31, 2024. The S&P 500 closed the week at 6,664.01, up 1.7% from 6,552.51 last week. Year-to-date, the S&P is up 10.3% from 6,040.53 on December 31, 2024. The Nasdaq closed the week at 22,679.98, up 2.1% from 22,204.43 last week. Year-to-date, it is up 15.6% from 19,627.44 on December 31, 2024. U.S. Treasury bond yields – The 10-year treasury bond closed the week yielding 4.02%, down slightly from 4.05% last week. The 30-year treasury bond yield ended the week at 4.60% down slightly from 4.63% last week. We watch bond yields because mortgage rates follow bond yields. Mortgage rates – Every Thursday, Freddie Mac publishes interest rates based on a survey of mortgage lenders throughout the week. The Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Survey reported that mortgage rates for the most popular loan products as of October 16, 2025, were as follows: The 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 6.27%, down slightly from 6.3% last week. The 15-year fixed was 5.52%, nearly unchanged from 5.53% last week. The graph below shows the trajectory of mortgage rates over the past year. September home sales – This week, the California Association of Realtors released its September 2025 home sales report. You can run a report on your city or zip code with the same data at RodeoRe.com. California existing-home sales – The California Association of Realtors reported that existing-home sales totaled 277,410 on an annualized basis in September, up 5% from 264,240 in August. Year-over-year sales were up 6.6% from a revised 260,340 in September 2024. The statewide median price paid for a home was $883,640 in September, down 1.7% from $899,130 in August and up 1.8% from $868,150 in September 2024. The unsold inventory index showed that there was a 3.6-month supply of homes for sale in September. The graph below shows CAR sales data by county for Southern California.
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Freddie Mac was chartered by Congress in 1970 to keep money flowing to mortgage lenders in support of homeownership and rental housing. Their mandate is to provide liquidity, stability, and affordability to the U.S.
Have a Great Weekend!