| Last | Change | Percent | |
| S&P Futures | 1836.9 | 0.5 | 0.03% |
| Eurostoxx Index | 3099.5 | 26.6 | 0.87% |
| Oil (WTI) | 99.73 | 0.2 | 0.18% |
| LIBOR | 0.247 | 0.000 | -0.10% |
| US Dollar Index (DXY) | 79.97 | -0.514 | -0.64% |
| 10 Year Govt Bond Yield | 3.02% | 0.03% | |
| Current Coupon Ginnie Mae TBA | 103.7 | 0.0 | |
| Current Coupon Fannie Mae TBA | 102.7 | -0.1 | |
| RPX Composite Real Estate Index | 200.7 | -0.2 | |
| BankRate 30 Year Fixed Rate Mortgage | 4.56 |
Stocks are more or less unch'd while the 10 year bond is sporting a 3 handle. No economic data this morning.
Builders are getting more and more into the jumbo business. You have seen average selling prices increasing (Toll Brother's ASPs top 700k), but even the lower end ones like Lennar have ASPs over 300k). Some of the terms are quite attractive - 270 day locks, and lower down payments (like 10%).
We saw it in the data last week, personal spending increased more than personal income increased. Does that mean we are going back to the good old (some would say bad old) days of consumers borrowing to fund a lifestyle they cannot afford? At this stage, the answer is probably "no." Auto sales are looking great for the end of the year, but that is probably due to the record age of cars on the road - around 12 years. I have said it before - this is how recessions end. The consumer starts spending not necessarily because they want to, it is because they have to. You can only defer consumption so long. Eventually the clothes become threadbare, the car dies and needs to be replaced, etc. etc. Incomes will rise once some of the slack in the labor market is taken out.
Separately, SpendingPulse reported that holiday spending increased 3.5% this year. The consumer is more optimistic than a couple of years ago, but isn't back at 2006-2007 levels either. Discounts still reign supreme.The National Retail Federation is forecasting holiday sales will rise 3.9%.
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