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Market factors for March 2024. What outperformed?
Mid-Caps (in all 3 categories).
Mid-Cap Growth (+5.81%), Mid-Cap Blend (+5.58%), Mid-Cap Value (+5.38%).
The S&P 500 (our benchmark) was up 3.27% for March.

Housing Starts Weaken Again in September

Higher interest rates continue to take their toll on the housing market (the national average for a 30-year mortgage is currently 7.16%). Housing starts declined 8.1% month-over-month in September. The continued weakness in starts was in both single-family units and multi-family units, down 4.7% and 13.2% month-over-month, respectively. The West and Midwest regions saw the biggest declines.

Read more at:

https://www.briefing.com/in-depth-analysis/bond-market-update/2022/10/19/housing-starts-and-building-permits-lack-singlefamily-strength

Existing Home Sales Decline in June.

Existing home sales (home resales) fell 5.4% in June from May, and declined 14.2% year-over-year from June 2021. The inventory for existing homes still remains tight, but rising mortgage rates and affordability issues are contributing to a decrease in buyer demand. The median sales price for all housing types increased 13.4% (year-over-year) to $416,000.

Sales Breakout by Region:
Northeast (unchanged); Midwest (-1.6%); South (-6.2%); and West (-11.1%).

Median Home Prices by Region (year-over-year):
Northeast (+10.1% to $453,300); Midwest (+10.2% to $306,900); South (+16.8% to $374,900); and West (+9.6% to $624,000).

88% of homes sold in June were on the market for less than a month. Read more at:

https://www.briefing.com/in-depth-analysis/bond-market-update/2022/7/20/existing-home-sales-fall-again

Housing Starts and Permits Weaken in June.

Housing starts in June were down 2% month-over-month from May. Building permits for June were down 0.6% from May. Permits for single-family homes declined across all U.S. regions. Starts for single-family homes declined across all regions, except for the Midwest (+2.1%).

Change in starts by region:
Northeast (-12.7%); Midwest (+2.1%); South (-2.9%); and West (-25.4%).

Change in permits by region:
Northeast (-14.8%); Midwest (-9.8%); South (-5.0%); and West (-13.2%).

Read more at:
https://www.briefing.com/in-depth-analysis/bond-market-update/2022/7/19/housing-starts-and-building-permits-weaken