

With the release of last month’s job numbers, we were able to get a glimpse of the major effects of three major hurricanes hitting within a few weeks. We have seen many pictures of devastation from Texas to Puerto Rico. The jobs report was one more picture which has made the national numbers look bad, even considering the drop in the national unemployment rate, but the national numbers still dwarf the drastic effects upon the local economies and millions of lives.
This story will not be a short story. It will be a novel with many chapters. It starts with mass devastation and the delivery of food and water, as well as other supplies of survival. It will end differently for many. Some will relocate and many others will be part of the rebuilding process. That rebuilding process will create thousands upon thousands of jobs. This is likely to result in construction job shortages in other parts of the country.
How long will it take to recover? No one knows the answer to that question. Many economic reports will be skewed as these regions go through the process. Even the federal budget deficits will be affected by a slowing economy and increased funds spent on recovery efforts. Along with the budget deficits, there will be a spike in mortgage defaults. But again, the housing stock will be rebuilt. For market analysts, this will be a very interesting story, but not nearly as meaningful as those affected locally.

October 6, 2017
Daily Value | Monthly Value | |
Oct 5 | September | |
6-month Treasury Security | 1.21% | 1.17% |
1-year Treasury Security | 1.35% | 1.28% |
3-year Treasury Security | 1.63% | 1.51% |
5-year Treasury Security | 1.94% | 1.80% |
10-year Treasury Security | 2.35% | 2.20% |
12-month LIBOR | 1.798% (Sept) | |
12-month MTA | 1.002% (Sept) | |
11th District Cost of Funds | 0.732% (Aug) | |
Prime Rate | 4.25% (June) |


Americans with an education level of bachelor’s degree or higher are more likely to own a home by age 30, according to a new study from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. That’s regardless of their student debt situation too, the study finds. Researchers who tracked college attendance and homeownership rate by age for those born between 1980 and 1986 concluded that college graduation is associated with higher homeownership rates. By age 33, the homeownership rate for those who did not attend college trails about two years behind those who did attend college with debt but did not graduate, the study showed. “Past research has not been able to disentangle how different types of educational attainment and student debt interact to impact the likelihood of owning a home,” according to a blog post at Liberty Street Economics. “Because we observe not only whether an individual owes student debt and has attended college but also graduation status, level of degree obtained, and homeownership status, we are able to further disentangle the relationship between different education levels and homeownership.” Yet, the amount of student debt a person has is related to homeownership rates, the study concluded. Americans carrying more than $25,000 of debt are less likely to own a home than those with smaller debt numbers. Source: RIS Media
Recent housing data point to house buying as actually being cheaper than renting, but the demand for apartments reached a record high over the second quarter of the year. Nationwide, apartment demand increased by a third in the second quarter year over year, according to a recent RealPage report. “Today’s strong demand for apartments reflects the combination of solid job formation and widespread availability of appealing new apartments,” said Greg Willett, chief economist for RealPage. There were 175,645 apartments completed last quarter – exceeding 86,431 units completed in the same period in 2016. Mid-year apartment occupancy stood at 95% but still stood a bit shy from mid-2016’s 95.3% rating, according to Axiometrics. Source: MPA