The ARAMCO Report

ARAMCO's President & CEO, Mehran Aram, discusses with Radio host Mark Carbonaro from Monterey's PowerTalk 1460 the current climate in the housing and commercial real estate industry and how it's being affected by the global pandemic.

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Housing Starts were up in May nearly 5% thanks in part to construction workers returning to employment following the Covid-19 outbreak. Meanwhile mortgage applications had another strong weak buoyed by mortgage rates reaching a new all-time low.

The housing market is holding fairly well in spite of the setback of the pandemic with mortgage rates reach fresh record lows making it an ideal time to refinance and lower monthly mortgage payments.

The stock market has improved after taking a hit due to the pandemic back in March. Meanwhile, mortgage rates are still hovering near all-time lows.

Mortgage rates are at record lows once again with rates dipping below 3% making it an ideal time, for those able to qualify, to refinance or purchase a new home.

Mortgage forbearance reach 9% of all active mortgages. However the good news is that new mortgage forbearance applications have slowed down substantially.

New home sales saw a slight uptick in April as some stay-at-home measures were lifted. New home sales are expected to continue to gradually increase into May as well.

Mortgage rates hit fresh lows at the end of April according to Freddie Mac and may fall lower making it an ideal time to refinance.

Mortgage in forbearance have steadily increased since the outbreak of the pandemic and have now reached nearly 5 million. Meanwhile the global pandemic is causing trade tensions with China to resurface once again.

Economists fear that the global pandemic will have a severe effect on the unemployment rate here in the U.S. in the short term. Economists are hopeful that a rebound will begin some time during the second half of the year.

First quarter home prices saw an uptick both quarter over quarter and year over year, however this report didn't reflect the effects of the pandemic on the housing industry yet.

Mortgage rates still near at all time lows making it an ideal time for those looking to refinance or buy a home. Although mortgage rates are still at their lows, some might find it difficult to get a loan as some lenders have made it a bit more difficult as they tighten their underwriting standards as a response to the global pandemic.

The global pandemic is keeping mortgage rates in the U.S. suppressed as they are still hovering near all-time lows. Meanwhile banks such as JP Morgan and Wells Fargo have paused receiving applications for a certain line of credit options due to the current uncertainty in the economy.

Though the forbearance program will indeed help a lot of Americans, the after effects could hinder households in getting a refinance down the road.

Mortgage rates have been in a steady lately still hovering near their all-time lows. Meanwhile mortgages under forbearance could possibly cause a problem for homeowners down the road.

As of April 30th the number of Covid-19 related mortgage forebearance plans had reached 3.8 million. Economists expect that number to continue on an upward trajectory for the foreseeable future.

Gilead Sciences' experimental drug remdesivir has shown positive effects in treating Covid-19 with the FDA moving forward in authorizing an emergency use for the drug without full approval yet. Meanwhile, some real estate companies are moving forward in reopening their businesses.

U.S. consumers are feeling the weight of the covid-19 pandemic as consumer sentiment continued to decline in April for the third straight month. The index fell from 89.1 in March to 71.8 in April, however economist polled expected the drop to be much lower.

With the country slowly trying to get back to normal , the real estate market is looking to get back on track by May or June with in-person open houses and tours of properties.

Financial markets in the U.S. are struggling to find solid footing amid the global pandemic. Tuesday's big sell-off in the stock market lead to a rally on the 10-year Treasury on Wednesday as the roller coaster pattern continues.

March's home sales report for previously owned homes from the National Association of Realtors showed that home sales saw the largest monthly drop since November 2015.

A survey by Realtor.com found that a quarter of consumers would purchase a home without seeing it in person. In today's housing market with mortgage rates still at near all-time lows and self-isolation measures in place, virtual touring a property has become more popular than ever.

Previously owned single-family homes in California saw a significant drop month over month in March signifying the affects of Covid-19. Sales were also down on a year-over-year basis as well.

Home Builders expectations of current single-family home sales and their expectations for those sales over the next six months reached a record low not seen in over 30 years. Meanwhile Retail sales saw the biggest decline since the government started tracking the series in 1992.

The stick market bit on the news that the federal government would begin talks about how to get the U.S. economy back up and running.

Many housing analysts are not in agreement on how home prices will react as we come out of the pandemic.

Workers seeking unemployment benefits hit 6.6 million last week bringing the total number to 17 million since news of the covid 19 pandemic broke. Meanwhile consumer sentiment reached a record low.

As the Covid 19 pandemic continues to hinder the real estate market, online real estate brokerage Redfin announced it would furlough 41% of its agents and reduce its staff by 7%.

The Covid-19 and "Stay at Home" measures implemented have caused a significant pull-back in real estate market as listings, showings and sales have all seen traffic decrease substantially.

The effects of Covid-19 has brought the U.S. economy to a near halt. Mortgage lenders are anticipating the largest delinquency of mortgage payments in the coming months.

The Governor of California, Gavin Newsom, has enacted policy to mortgage lender to allow a 90-day forbearance on mortgage payments, however, no word yet on payments of property taxes which are due on April 10.

Yet again mortgage rates can not seem to find stable footing as both the 30-year and 15-year rates jumped again.

Quite a few mortgage lenders and banks are helping homeowners alleviate the burden of mortgage payments for up to 90 days by offering them a forbearance. Meanwhile mortgage rates continue their roller-coaster ride with both the 30-year and 15-year increasing slightly.

Purchase and refinance applications fell last week due in part to an uptick in mortgage rates.

The stock market fell sharply on Friday while the bond market rallied seeing both the 30-year and 15-year fixed rates in the low 3s.

Jobless claims hit a new record for the week ended March 21 and surpassed the previous record by 4 times the amount and twice the amount projected by economists. Meanwhile the stock market surged thanks in part to the stimulus package passed by the senate.

Home prices continued their upward trend year over year but economists are anticipating a substantial drop-off for future reports as the Coronavirus will begin to show its effects on the housing market.

The Dow Jones surged 11% on Tuesday on news that the Trump Administration was close to signing a stimulus package aimed at helping the economy navigate through the Coronavirus pandemic.

California home sales had a robust February however fears of the ongoing covid-19 virus are expected to temper home sales in the coming months. Meanwhile the bond market continues its roller coaster ride as mortgage rates dipped slightly on Monday.

Sales of previously owned homes had a solid month in February reaching a sales pace not seen since 2007. However the coronavirus threat is expected to cool the pace of sales in the coming months. Meanwhile mortgage rates had a big drop on Friday.

Mortgage rates saw a massive jump over the last few days thanks in part to the Trump administration's costly stimulus plan and mortgage default risk among other issues.

The financial markets are seeing unusual large daily moves as investors try to hedge against panic over the spread of the Coronavirus.

Fed cuts rates in an attempt to quell Coronavirus fears with the DOW falling approximately 3,000 points. Mortgage-backed securities reacted favorably to the news.

Mortgage rates saw another jump following the continued inconsistent behavior of the financial markets. Stocks did rally a bit follow the Trump Administration's plan to combat the spread of the Coronavirus.

Europe travel ban and the ever-growing concern over the Coronavirus led to a massive selloff in the stock market

Stock and Bond markets both moving lower as the 10-year Treasury wrapped up its biggest two-session climb since January 2009.

A massive sell-off in the Dow Jones coupled with conflicts over oil pricing plus the ongoing Coronavirus fear all favored the bond market with mortgage rates reaching another all-time low.

Volatility in the financial markets along with the Trump Administration discussing a stimulus plan caused a sell-off in the bond market ultimately causing mortgage rates to tick up a bit.

February's employment report far exceeded market expectations of 177,000 and the unemployment rate dipped to 3.5%. Stocks and bond yields were pushed lower due to the ongoing fear of the Coronavirus spreading.

Economic fallout continues to weigh heavy on the financial markets as new cases of the Coronavirus continue to increase. As a result the benchmark 10-year Treasury yield hit a new all-time low.