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Below is the Conejo Valley Market Report for October 2016 detailing local real estate market statistics and including year-over-year data:

Conejo Valley

Below is the San Fernando Valley Market Report for October 2016 detailing local real estate market statistics and including year-over-year data:

San Fernando Valley

Federal Reserve raises its key rate 1/4% – The Fed announced Wednesday that it was raising its Discount and Federal Funds rate by 1/4%. This was just the second increase in 10 years. The first was done last December with an announcement to expect two more increases in 2016. The first increase did not happen as growth slowed during the first half of the year. GDP growth was just 1.1% for the first 6 months of 2016. The third quarter showed far more growth as the GDP rebounded to 3% growth and hiring picked back up. The Fed mentioned these as part of their decision for Wednesday’s increase. They also stated that they expected to make three more increases in 2017. Experts had expected that number to be two increases. The market was expecting the increase, and an announcement of two rate hikes expected next year, not three. That moved the markets down slightly. When The Fed increases rates, those increases tend to affect short term rates more than long term rates. That was the case this week as short term treasury rates increased, while the 30 year barely moved up. Equity lines tied to prime moved up 1/4% following the announcement. ARM mortgages will also move up. Shorter term hybrids like 3, and 5 year fixed moved up while the 30 year fixed barely moved. 

Stocks end week just slightly below record highs – All indexes hit record highs on Tuesday before being dragged down a bit after The Fed announced a 1/4% rate hike on Wednesday. The rate hike was largely expected so stocks didn’t lose much following the announcement. The DOW Jones Industrial Average closed the week at 19,843.41, up from last week’s close of 19,756.85. The S&P 500 ended the week at 2,258.07, unchanged from its close of 2,259.53 last week. The NASDAQ closed the week at 5,437.16, slightly off from last week’s close of 5,444.50.

U.S. Treasury Bond yields higher – The 10-year U.S. Treasury Bond closed the week yielding 2.60%, up from 2.47% last Friday. The 30-year Treasury Bond yield closed the week at 3.19%, up from 3.16% last week. Mortgage rates follow bond yields, so we watch treasury bonds closely.  

Mortgage rates continue to inch up – The Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Survey released on December 15, 2016 showed that average mortgage rates from lenders surveyed for the most popular mortgage products were as follows: The 30-year fixed rate average was 4.16% The 15-year fixed average rate was 3.37%. The 5/1 ARM average rate was 3.19%. Rates rose Thursday and Friday so next week’s rates will be slightly higher. 

November home sales statistics were not released yet by either The California Association of Realtors or The National Association of Realtors. They should be released soon and included in my report next week. 

Have a great weekend!
Syd

DOW, S&P, and NASDAQ all close week at record highs – Stocks continued to rally with major indexes up over 3% for the week. While many are critical of Trump’s cabinet and other appointments, investors have seen them as extremely business friendly, which has fueled a continuing rally. Oil rose further this week, which boosted energy stocks and is expected to help areas tied to oil production, which have lost oil and mining jobs. Oil was around $46 just a couple weeks ago, but closed at $51.50 Friday. The DOW Jones Industrial Average closed the week at 19,756.85, up from last week’s close of 19,170.42. The S&P 500 ended the week at 2,259.53, up from its close of 2,191.95 last week. The NASDAQ closed the week at 5,444.50, up from last week’s close of 5,255.65. 

U.S. Treasury Bond yields higher – The 10-year U.S. Treasury Bond closed the week yielding 2.47%, up from 2.40% last Friday. The 30-year Treasury Bond yield closed the week at 3.16%, up from 3.08% last week. Mortgage rates follow bond yields, so we watch treasury bonds closely.  

Mortgage rates continue to rise – The Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Survey released on December 8, 2016 showed that average mortgage rates from lenders surveyed for the most popular mortgage products were as follows: The 30-year fixed rate average was 4.13%. The 15-year fixed average rate was 3.36%. The 5/1 ARM average rate was 3.17%.

Home sales numbers and price date should begin to be reported next week. It will be interesting to see what November sales figures look like.

Have a great weekend,
Syd

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DOW, S&P, and NASDAQ all close week at record highs – Stocks continued to rally with major indexes up over 3% for the week. While many are critical of Trump’s cabinet and other appointments, investors have seen them as extremely business friendly, which has fueled a continuing rally. Oil rose further this week, which boosted energy stocks and is expected to help areas tied to oil production, which have lost oil and mining jobs. Oil was around $46 just a couple weeks ago, but closed at $51.50 Friday. The DOW Jones Industrial Average closed the week at 19,756.85, up from last week’s close of 19,170.42. The S&P 500 ended the week at 2,259.53, up from its close of 2,191.95 last week. The NASDAQ closed the week at 5,444.50, up from last week’s close of 5,255.65. 

U.S. Treasury Bond yields higher – The 10-year U.S. Treasury Bond closed the week yielding 2.47%, up from 2.40% last Friday. The 30-year Treasury Bond yield closed the week at 3.16%, up from 3.08% last week. Mortgage rates follow bond yields, so we watch treasury bonds closely.  

Mortgage rates continue to rise – The Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Survey released on December 8, 2016 showed that average mortgage rates from lenders surveyed for the most popular mortgage products were as follows: The 30-year fixed rate average was 4.13%. The 15-year fixed average rate was 3.36%. The 5/1 ARM average rate was 3.17%.

Home sales numbers and price date should begin to be reported next week. It will be interesting to see what November sales figures look like.

Have a great weekend,
Syd

DOW, S&P, and NASDAQ all ended November at record highs – Markets are up 4-6% since the election. Investors have been bullish on prospects of higher corporate profits in the future based on hopes that The Trump Administration will deliver on promises of tax cuts, loosening of regulation, and higher infrastructure spending. The highest gains have been financials, which are up 10% on hopes of changes to regulations put in place after the financial system collapse. Coal mining and energy stocks have faired well, also on hopes of less regulation. Defense stocks have risen on hopes of more spending. Construction and construction related companies that would be involved in infrastructure also saw gains. Clean energy stocks have not done as well, perhaps on fears of more competition from oil, gas and coal. Unrelated to the election, oil prices also rose to $49 a barrel from about $46 at the end of the month as OPEC reached an agreement to cut back production. The DOW Jones Industrial Average closed the month at 19,128.58, up over 1,000 points from 18,142.42 on October 31. The S&P 500 closed the month of October at 2,198.31, up from October’s close of 2,126.15. The NASDAQ ended the month at 5,323.68, up from 5,189.13 at the end of October.  

U.S. Treasury Bond yields jump in November – Bond yields shot up after the election on expectations that tax cuts, higher defense spending, and an infrastructure program would increase U.S. deficit spending and debt, which is already out of control. The 10-year U.S. Treasury Bond closed the month yielding 2.37%, up from 1.84% at the end of October. The 30-year Treasury Bond yield was 3.02% on November 30, up from 2.58% at the end of October. Mortgage rates follow bond yields, so we watch treasury bonds closely.  

Mortgage rates rise about 1/2% in November – Rates soared following the election, rising almost 1/2 point in 10 days. The Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Survey released on December 1, 2016 showed that average mortgage rates from lenders surveyed for the most popular mortgage products were as follows: The 30-year fixed rate average was 4.08%, up from 3.47% on the October 27, 2016 survey. The 15-year fixed average rate was 3.34%, up from 2.78% on October 27. The 5/1 ARM average rate was 3.15%, up from 2.84% on October 27. 

U.S. employers’ add 178,000 new jobs in November – Unemployment rate drops to 4.6% – The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the U.S. economy added 178,000 net new jobs in October and the unemployment rate dropped from 4.9 percent in October to 4.6% in November, its lowest level since August 2007. Wages in November were 2.5% percent higher than last November, according to the report. 

California employers add 31,200 new jobs in October – The Employment Development Department reported that California added 31,200 net new jobs in October. The state’s unemployment rate held steady at 5.5%, as more workers entered the workforce. While this is higher than the national rate, which was 4.9% in October, it’s well below California’s 12.2% unemployment rate at its peak in 2010. Employers in Los Angeles County increased their payrolls by 19,400 employees. The unemployment rate in Los Angeles County actually increased slightly to 5.1% in October from 5% in September as more workers began the job search. Year over year the unemployment rate is down a full percent from 6.1% from October 2015. California runs a few weeks behind. We won’t have November’s figures until around the 20th of December. 

U.S. Economy grows at fastest pace in 2 years in the third quarter of 2016 -The Commerce Department reported that the Total economic output of the economy, also known as Gross Domestic Product, grew 3.2% in the third quarter. That was faster in the third quarter than previously estimated, and at its fasted pace in two years. This rebound was welcome news after a disappointing first half of the year. 

California existing home sales and prices increase in October – The California Association of Realtors released its October home sales report. The number of existing homes sold in October totaled 442,970 on a seasonally adjusted annualized rate. That represented an increase of 4.1% from September and a year over year increase of 8% from last October’s figures. The statewide median price was $513,520, up 1.2% from September and up 7.3% from last October when the median price was $478,780. Inventory continues to be near record lows as the unsold inventory index slipped to a 3.4 month supply of homes listed in October from a 3.5 month supply in September. 

California pending home sales increase in October – The number of new home contracts on re-sale homes in California increased 1.5% in October from last October’s numbers, according to data released by The California Association of Realtors. On a monthly basis, pending contracts were down 6.7% from September. The Southern California region fared even better with October sales up 6.8% from last October and up 2.4% from September. The association uses year over year rather then month over comparisons to account for seasonal changes in sales numbers. Typically, sales begin to slow heading into the holidays which makes comparing same month figures more accurate. Pending home sales figures are useful because they give an indication of what closed sales figures will be in 30 to 60 days when those sales close escrow. 

U.S. existing home sales hit the highest level since February 2007 – The National Association of Realtors reported that sales of existing homes increased 2% in October to an annual rate of 5.6 million homes, the highest level since February 2007. Existing home sales are closed re-sales of single family detached homes, town homes, condominiums, and co-ops. Year over year the number of sales are up 5.9% from last October’s levels. Prices were also up nationwide as the median price this October was 6% higher than October 2015. Pending home sales were also higher nationally increasing 2% year over year. 

DOW, S&P, and NASDAQ all ended the week at record highs – Markets are up 4-6% since the election. Investors have been bullish on prospects of higher corporate profits in the future based on hopes that Trump will deliver on promises of tax cuts, loosening of regulation, and higher infrastructure spending. The DOW Jones Industrial Average closed the week at 19,152.14, up from 18,867.93 last Friday. The DOW is up 9.9% year to date. The S&P 500 closed the week at 2,213.35, up from 2,181.90 last week. The S&P is up 8.3% year to date. The NASDAQ closed the week at 5,398.92, up from last week’s close of 5,321.51. The NASDAQ is up 7.8% year to date. 

U.S. Treasury Bond yields unchanged this week after rising about 1/2% in two weeks – Bond yields which shot up after the election on expectations of higher U.S. deficits held steady this week. Hopefully, mortgage rates, which move closely with treasury rates, will flatten out as well. The 10 year U.S. Treasury Bond yield closed the week at 2.36%, up from 2.34% last Friday. The 30-year U.S. Treasury Bond closed at 3.01%, unchanged from 3.01% last week. Mortgage rates follow bond yields so we watch bond yields closely.

Mortgage rates continued to rise last week – The Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Survey, which was released on November 23, 2016, showed that average mortgage rates from lenders surveyed for the most popular mortgage products were as follows: The 30-year fixed rate average was 4.03%. The 15-year fixed average rate was 3.25%. The 5/1 ARM average rate was 3.12%. Rates have increased further since the survey so next week’s rates will be higher. Currently, the 30-year fixed rate is around 4.25%.

U.S. existing home sales hit the highest level since February 2007 – The National Association of Realtors reported that sales of existing homes increased 2% in October to an annual rate of 5.6 million homes, the highest level since February 2007. Existing home sales are closed re-sales of single family detached homes, town homes, condominiums, and co-ops. Year over year the number of sales are up 5.9% from last October’s levels. Prices were also up nationwide as the median price this October was 6% higher than October 2015. 

California pending home sales increase in October – The number of new home contracts on re-sale homes in California increased 1.5% in October from last October’s numbers, according to data released by The California Association of Realtors. On a monthly basis, pending contracts were down 6.7% from September. The Southern California region fared even better with October sales up 6.8% from last October and up 2.4% from September. The association uses year over year rather then month over comparisons to account for seasonal changes in sales numbers. Typically sales begin to slow heading into the holidays which makes comparing same month figures more accurate. Pending home sales figures are useful because they give an indication of what closed sales figures will be in 30 to 60 days when those sales close escrow. 

I hope you had a great Thanksgiving and are enjoying a nice holiday weekend! 

Several Rodeo Realty agents spent their Sunday morning walking/running for a great cause! 

Rodeo Realty President Syd Leibovitch and agents participated in the annual Walk of Ages that was held at the Woodley Park in Van Nuys.

The family-oriented 5K Walk/Run raised much-needed funds for the Los Angeles Jewish Home.

This year, Rodeo Realty not only participating in the walk/run, but also sponsored the event. The company donated $8,000 and was an Angel Sponsor for the Walk of Ages XVII.

Rodeo Realty also set up a fundraising page through the event’s website where several agents in the company donated and raised money for the non-profit organization.

Thanks to Rodeo Realty’s support, seniors of the Los Angeles Jewish Home will be cared for in a warm, nurturing environment for generations to come. 

Stocks up again – Markets increased marginally this week, adding to the record breaking gains and levels reached last week. The DOW Jones Industrial Average closed the week at 18,867.93 up from 18,847.66 last Friday. It is up more than 5.5% in the week and a half since the election. The S&P 500 closed the week at 2,181.90 up from 2,164.45 last week. The NASDAQ closed the week at 5,321.51 up from last week’s close of 5,237.11.

Inflation while tame increases – U.S. Consumer prices recorded their largest increase in six months in October suggesting a pickup in inflation. The Labor Department’s Consumer Price Index increased 0.4% last month after rising 0.3% in September. In the last 12 months ending October, the CPI has increased 1.6%, its biggest increase since October 2014. They also measure Core CPI which excludes food and energy costs. Core CPI increased 2.1% from last October. The Fed has their own measurement of inflation. It was 1.7% in October. Their target is 2%, but most experts expect them to increase their key interest rates in December, as inflation has finally shown signs of ticking up. 
 

U.S. Treasury Bond yields jump – The 10 year U.S. Treasury Bond yield closed the week at 2.34%, up from 2.15% last Friday. The 30-year U.S. Treasury Bond closed at 3.01%, up from 2.94% last week. Mortgage rates follow bond yields so we watch bond yields closely.

Mortgage rates continued to rise last week – The Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Survey which was released on November 17, 2016 showed that average mortgage rates from lenders surveyed for the most popular mortgage products were as follows: The 30-year fixed rate average was 3.94%. The 15-year fixed average rate was 3.14%. The 5/1 ARM average rate was 3.07%. Rates increased further throughout the week so next week’s rates will be higher. Currently, the 30-year fixed rate is around 4.25%. 

Home sales and prices increase in October – The California Association of Realtors released its October home sales report. The number of existing homes sold in October totaled 442,970 on a seasonally adjusted annualized rate. That represented an increase of 4.1% from September and a year over year increase of 8% from last October’s figures. The statewide median price was $513,520, up 1.2% from September and up 7.3% from last October when the median price was $478,780. Inventory continues to be near record lows as the unsold inventory index slipped to a 3.4 month supply of homes listed in October from a 3.5 month supply in September.