Rocket Fuel Newsletter – 11/18/2024
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This week’s edition has the Fed’s latest rate cut, new inflation figures, a solar initiative for seniors and a quick dive into the challenges of repairing uninsured homes.
Fuel up! 🚀
Fed cuts rates
The Federal Reserve has lowered the Federal Funds rate by another 25 basis points at its latest meeting, setting the target rate to 4.5% – 4.75%. Following this decision, markets are less confident that another cut will come in December, and mortgage rates have edged higher. We can expect some volatility in the near future as markets continue to react to the recent election and any new inflation figures.
Read the full statement from the Federal Open Market Committee here.
Consumer Price Index (CPI) inches up
Speaking of new inflation figures, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) was released, showing a 2.6% increase over the 12 months ending in October. This is a slight rise from the 2.4% reported in September but aligns with expectations. Inflation remains above the Fed’s target of 2% and will continue to play a key role in future rate cut decisions.
Read the full Economic News Release here.
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development invests in solar
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has invested $231,000 to provide solar power for low-income senior residents in a Maine apartment complex. Funded by the Inflation Reduction Act, this project aims to enhance energy and water efficiency through technological advancements while supporting vulnerable communities.
Read the full press release here.
Exciting news: We’re extending our 24 Takeoff offer.
This means every eligible purchase or refinance for conventional, VA and FHA loans will automatically receive a 24 bps credit until December 1st, 2024.1 Watch Fawaz explain how this opportunity can help fill your pipeline before the holidays and close out the year on a high note.
Low-value homes in need of repair
The Leading Indicator of Remodeling Activity (LIRA) is projecting an increase in home improvement and maintenance spending, a positive sign for the housing market.
The LIRA measures short-term trends in national spending for improvements and maintenance to owner-occupied homes.
Defining Improvements: remodeling, renovation, restoration, additions, alterations and replacements of home components that add value to a home or property and Maintenance as repairs that maintain the current value of the home.
The housing market has been facing an ongoing shortage of homes, making it crucial for existing homes to remain livable in order to avoid further strain on the industry. However, it's unclear whether the expected increase in LIRA will be directed toward the homes that need it most.
Millions of affordable homes are currently deteriorating and becoming uninhabitable, worsening the U.S. housing shortage. These issues are disproportionately impacting low-income minorities, many of whom are elderly and living on fixed incomes. Earlier this year, the Consumer Federation of America released a report detailing the $1.6 trillion in uninsured American homes. The majority of these homes are valued at less than $150,000, and the report classifies them as "lower-valued" homes.
Additionally, lower income homeowners make up the largest portion of the uninsured population. As seen in the table below in Figure 3.
This situation is a tricky one. Homeowners in lower-valued, uninsured homes are likely to be lower-income individuals. This means many don’t have the savings or income to make the repairs needed to their home. Instead, they rely heavily on federal, state, local and nonprofit organizations to help with necessary home repairs.
One program that was seen as a model for addressing this issue was the Whole-Home Repairs program in Pennsylvania. This program gave state-level organizations the freedom to help underserved homes with their most pressing housing problems, rather than being limited by strict guidelines, compared to other programs.
The demand for this program was extremely high in the Pittsburgh area, with only 6% of applicants receiving the needed repairs. Despite the clear need, funding for the Whole-Home Repairs program was not renewed.
This highlights the significant gap between the demand for home repair assistance and the available funding and resources. Lower income homeowners are disproportionately affected by deteriorating housing conditions and the lack of sustainable, well-funded programs to address these issues are only increasing the housing shortage.
Addressing this challenge will require a multi-pronged approach, with increased investment and coordination between federal, state, local and nonprofit organizations to ensure that essential home repairs are accessible to those who need it most.
For more information on what home repair resources are out there, USA.gov is a great place to start.
Millions of U.S. homes are falling into disrepair : NPR
Leading Indicator of Remodeling Activity (LIRA) | Joint Center for Housing Studies
A Turn to Growth Expected for Residential Remodeling | Joint Center for Housing StudiesPennsylvania's
Whole-Home Repairs program faces funding shortage | 90.5 WESA
Join us at the OCN Mortgage Holiday Party
End the year with us at the OCN Mortgage Holiday Party on December 5 in Irvine, California. It’s a perfect way to celebrate the holiday season and network with industry peers. Let’s toast to our shared successes and look ahead to 2025.
Use code ROCKETFREE for free registration and secure your spot for a festive evening. This is our last event of the year – don’t miss it!
OCN Mortgage Holiday Party | Dec. 5 | CA | Register here
Here's our full list of events:
- OCN Mortgage Holiday Party in Irvine on December 5.
- New England Mortgage Expo in on January 15-17, where you'll hear keynotes from Mike Fawaz, Rocket Pro TPO Executive Vice President and Don Chiesa, Rocket Pro TPO Vice President.
Help your clients unlock financial flexibility.
Visit the Home Equity Loan Toolkit on the Marketing Hub to download ready-to-use social posts, flyers, and more to supercharge your outreach. Help your clients unlock the financial flexibility they need for home improvements, debt consolidation or unexpected expenses with a Home Equity Loan.
Click here to view the toolkit.
VA Training Module: Military History
VA Training Module: Military Communication
New Marketing Hub Items: Home Equity Loan
Marketing Hub Toolkit: Bank Statement Loan
Amrock Webinar: Mastering Title Insurance & eClosing
On a much tougher puzzle than the week prior, just six solvers completed the puzzle in less than 2 minutes, including three who finished in under 1 minute. Congratulations to our winner, whose time of 43 seconds was good enough for first place by 5 seconds.
This week’s puzzle gets 3 Rockets out of 5.
Good luck!
1 Client will receive 24 bps credit on all eligible loans locked through the Rocket Pro TPO portal during the promotional period. Offer valid from November 4, 2024, 10:00 am ET through November 17, 2014, 11:59 pm ET. Offer is not valid on Jumbo, Home Equity, or Bank Statement loans. This offer cannot be retroactively applied to previously closed or locked loans. Rocket Mortgage reserves the right to cancel/modify this offer at any time. Offer is nontransferable. Offer is not valid with any other discounts or promotions including ONE+ and Welcome Home RateBreak. Additional restrictions/conditions may apply. This is not a commitment to lend.