Data

New home sales regained all the ground they lost in June, jumping by 13,000 to an annualized rate of 372,000 in July, the Census Bureau and HUD reported Thursday. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg expected the report to show a sales pace of 362,000. Sales for June were revised up to 359,000 from the originally reported 350,000. Both the median and average sales price of a new home though dropped month-over-month and year-over-year according to the report, each falling to the lowest level since January.

First time claims for unemployment insurance increased 4,000 for the week ended Aug. 18 to 372,000, the highest level in a month, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg had expected 365,000 initial claims. The prior week├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós total was revised up to 368,000 from the originally reported 366,000. Continuing claims ├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔé¼┼ô reported on a one-week lag ├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔé¼┼ô increased 4,000 to 3,317,000 from the prior week's 3,313,000, revised from the originally reported 3,305,000.

Outpacing industry forecasts, mortgage originations ticked up 5.2 percent in the second quarter, totaling $405 billion during the three-month period, according to a report released this week from Keefe, Bruyette & Woods. On an annual basis, originations are up 44.6 percent, according to the study. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods suggests much of the increase came from refinance activity driven by low interest rates. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods predicts strong origination volume next quarter.

Zillow released on Tuesday its Real Estate Market Reports for July, revealing that the company├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós Home Value Index hit $151,600 for the month, a 0.5 percent gain from June and a 1.2 percent increase year-over-year. Of the metro areas covered in the reports, 62 percent saw home values climb during July, with only 49 of the 167 areas posting declines. Of the 30 largest areas covered, the Phoenix metro experienced the largest monthly increase (2.2 percent), followed by San Francisco (1.2 percent) and Denver (1.0 percent).

Existing homes sale rose to an annual rate 4.47 million in July, the National Association of Realtors reported Wednesday. Economists had expected the sale pace to be 4.51 million. Economists had expected the sale pace to be 4.51 million. The median price of an existing home though fell in July for the first time since January. The median price of an existing home fell $1,500, 0.8 percent, from June to $187,300. The median price was up year-over-year for the fifth straight month in July.

While some signs suggest the housing recovery may finally be under way, others signal that banks will likely continue to see repurchase claims from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Analysts with Fitch Ratings found in a report on Monday that repurchase risk remains high for several financial institutions, including Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, and Ally Financial. According to Fitch, repurchase risk climbed to 41 percent for Bank of America. Roughly 60 percent of the claims stemmed from private-label requests.

As the housing market and the overall economy crawl languidly toward an elusive recovery many believe will still take years to achieve, President Barack Obama suggests the key to progress is a broad housing refinance plan. Obama endorses a bill that would allow underwater homeowners to refinance at current interest rates, which continue to wallow near historic lows. A few senators have proposed bills recently to allow more homeowners to refinance their mortgages.

July├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós positive economic news did little to change Fannie Mae├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós forecast for 2012, the GSE revealed Tuesday. Fannie Mae├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós Economic & Strategic Research Group issued its latest economic outlook, maintaining its expectations for modest growth in 2012. This news comes in spite of reports of strengthening retail sales and job growth in July. Fannie Mae├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós Economic & Strategic Research Group issued its latest economic outlook, maintaining its expectations for modest growth in 2012.

FICO and Savvis are teaming up to provide a new could-based technology service for lenders. The companies have joined forces to launch FICO Debt Manager, a platform that will give users game-changing adaptive control capabilities for collection and recovery processes related to mortgages, secured and unsecured loans, and many different types of accounts.

Massachusetts-based radius financial group inc. has been honored with a national accolade. Inc. Magazine named the mortgage bank among the country's fastest growing companies for the fourth consecutive year, ranking radius at 1,222 on the publication's annual roster of 5,000 thriving organizations to watch.