Daily Dose

Mortgage industry leaders gathered this week at the annually held National Property Preservation Conference (NPPC) to discuss some of the greatest challenges facing housing today and collaborate on how to tackle them head-on.

In its weekly Primary Mortgage Market Survey, Freddie Mac reported the average interest rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) slid up to 4.02 percent (0.5 point) for the week ending November 6. It was the first time the 30-year fixed average measured above 4 percent in nearly a month.

According to a report released Thursday by the National Association of Realtors (NAR), the median price for an existing single-family home rose annually last quarter in 73 percent of the 172 major metros surveyed. That share was up slightly from the second quarter, when 71 percent of metros posted year-over-year gains.

In an analysis of housing affordability in 512 U.S. counties, RealtyTrac discovered that lowering the down payment for a conventional mortgage loan from 20 percent to 3 percent would still not translate to housing affordability for a majority of those with non-mortgage debt such as student loans or a car payment.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are set to send another $6.8 billion to the U.S. Treasury after posting a mild increase in profits for the third quarter. By the end of this year, the two GSEs, which have been in conservatorship since 2008, will have returned a combined $225.5 billion to taxpayers.

In a report released Thursday, real estate data firm RealtyTrac revealed that 33.9 percent of single-family home and condo sales last quarter were transacted in cash, down from 36.9 percent in the second quarter and flat from last year.

The number of jobs in the private sector increased by 230,000 from September to October, according to the latest report from ADP. October's growth was the highest since June and the second highest so far this year, said ADP's president and CEO, Carlos Rodriguez.

U.S. District Judge Richard Leon ruled this week that only claims of direct, intentional discrimination could be made under the Fair Housing Act, which was passed in 1968. While the Fair Housing Act does not specifically state it allows disparate claims lawsuits, courts have allowed them for years.

According to an examination of application numbers by macroeconomic research company Capital Economics, total mortgage application volume jumped 10.1 percent in October, bouncing back after four straight months of declines. The headline measure received a major boost from refinance applications, which were up 18.5 percent month-over-month to arrive at an eight-month high.

Access to mortgage credit tightened in October, according to a report from the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). The group's Mortgage Credit Availability Index (MCAI), a gauge of credit access based on borrower traits and underwriting trends, fell 2.5 percent last month to a reading of 113.2.