The V-shaped housing recovery continues. New Home Sales soared in June to a level higher than the one they reached before the shutdown–up 13.8% for the month, posting their highest annual sales rate since 2007!

Existing Home Sales spiked 20.7% in June, their biggest monthly gain ever. Sales are still down 11.3% from a year ago, but demand is strong–62% of homes sold were on the market less than a month.

Attom Data reports the typical home-sale profit hit $75,971 in the second quarter this year. That’s a 36.3% return on investment (ROI) from the original price for home sellers, a new post-recession high.

REVIEW OF LAST WEEK

MIXED FEELINGS… Wall Street saw a few noteworthy developments to feel good about, and a few to worry over. The net result? The three major stock indexes saw modest declines at the end of a light data week.

Points of worry included initial jobless claims inching up after shutdowns in states with “second wave” coronavirus infections. There were also concerns over tensions with China and delays around an upcoming economic relief bill.

But we got blow-out housing market reports, and continuing jobless claims keep falling. Plus, quarterly corporate earnings have exceeded expectations, and there were signs of progress on the vaccine front.

The week ended with the Dow down 0.8%, to 26,470; the S&P 500 down 0.3%, to 3,216; and the Nasdaq down 1.3%, to 10,363.

Bonds didn’t do much, some posting slim losses, others slim gains. The UMBS 3.0% went down 0.9, to $105.27. In Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey, the national average 30-year fixed mortgage rate was up slightly from the prior week’s record low. Remember, mortgage rates can be extremely volatile, so check with your mortgage professional for up-to-the-minute information.

DID YOU KNOW?… The housing market’s recovery is doing a nice job relieving the shutdown’s stress on the overall economy. That’s because housing related expenditures account for about 15% of the country’s GDP!

THIS WEEK’S FORECAST

PENDING HOME SALES UP IN A DATA PACKED WEEK… June Pending Home Sales should show contracts signed on existing homes up again. But Consumer Confidence might be off a little, while the GDP-Advanced read reflects the full impact of the shutdown in Q2. But Initial Unemployment Claims should fall, while Personal Spending has consumers contributing to the recovery, Core PCE Prices keep inflation in check, and the Fed leaves rates alone.

NOTE: Weaker economic data tends to send bond prices up and interest rates down, while positive data points to lower bond prices and higher loan rates.