September is commonly associated with the beginning of the school year, but it also signals the end of the peak home buying season. The tapering of the housing market in September is part of its normal annual cycle, which follows the same general pattern of peaks and troughs every year, with one big exception. In 2020, the pandemic was the ... Read More ›

First American Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi was interviewed on CNBC and Yahoo! Finance last week, discussing potential moderation of the housing market and affordability challenges with CNBC and providing perspective on July housing starts data and the implications for the housing market with Yahoo! Finance. Read More ›

National Homeownership Month takes on a new meaning this year, as the pandemic has redefined the role of a home. A home is not just a dwelling or even just a vehicle for wealth creation, but also an office, a classroom, a daycare and even a gym. A home, now more than ever, has become a top priority for American households. The broadening role of ... Read More ›

One of the most closely watched indicators of inflation, the Consumer Price Index (CPI), jumped 4.2 percent year over year this April. This is a faster pace than most economists anticipated, and was a result of base effects, combined with the numerous supply chain bottlenecks driving up prices as the economy reopens. One of the most important ... Read More ›

More than a year into the pandemic, the housing market continues to run hot. The supply and demand imbalance brewing before the pandemic boiled over in the past year, resulting in record low levels of housing inventory and, consequently, the fastest pace of annual house price appreciation since 2005. With the arrival of the spring home-buying ... Read More ›

Following the rapid contraction in U.S. economic activity because of the outbreak of COVID-19, millions of Americans took advantage of payment suspension and mortgage forbearance programs. At the peak in June 2020, approximately 4.3 million homeowners were in forbearance plans. A year into the pandemic, and that number has declined to ... Read More ›