The Dow Jones closed at its highest level since the summer of 2008, gaining 268 pts for the week and ending at 12,092. The stock market rally was somewhat surprising considering that the employment report released yesterday was considered disappointing in some regards.
According to the report, the private sector added 36,000 jobs for the month of January, which is far off from analysts’ expectations of nearly 150,000. However, the average hourly earnings rose .4%, which was a pleasant surprise and the national unemployment rate dropped to 9%. Also encouraging was the U6 reading (real rate of unemployment which includes “underemployment”), which dropped from 16.7% to 16.1%.
Mortgage rates worsened as more investors sold their positions in bonds to satisfy their appetites for stocks.
Local Economy and Real Estate Market
The Center for Business and Economic Research reported this past week that “the confidence level by the valley’s business leaders has reached its highest point in three years”. Stephen Brown, the center’s director, stated that the report has a direct correlation to future outcome in economic conditions, based on similar reports conducted in other parts of the country.
NASA representative Lori Garver visited Rober Bigelow’s Aerospace Facility in North Las Vegas yesterday. Bigelow hopes to convince NASA to contribute funds to help develop his ultimate dream of space travel and lodging by 2015. I’m not really sure how this relates to real estate in Southern Nevada, I just thought it was cool.
· FHA Choice Plus (Now, PRMI will allow FICO scores as low as 580!)
· 95% conventional financing with FICO as low as 660
· 90% financing for 2nd homes
· 90% financing for jumbo loans up to $600,000
