Home sales tileSlower growth for home prices
U.S. home prices increased in August, yet the pace of these gains continues to slow, helping to improve affordability for would-be buyers.
Nationwide, home prices rose 6.4 percent in August compared with a year ago, Real estate data provider CoreLogic said Tuesday. That marks a decline from an annual gain of 6.8 percent in July. Home prices had been rising as much as 12 percent yearly toward the end of last year.
Core Logic said the price gains were bigger in Georgia in the past year at 8.2 percent but less in Tennessee, where home prices were up 5.9 percent in the past year. Alabama home prices were up 2.8 percent over the past year, Core Logic said.
Job openings rising in August
U.S. employers advertised the most job openings in nearly 14 years during August, yet their pace of hiring fell compared to July.
The number of available jobs rose 230,000 to 4.84 million during the month, the Labor Department said Tuesday. Restaurants, hotels and health care providers drove much of the increase, which resulted in the most openings since January 2001.
But total hiring fell 294,000 to 4.64 million, driven by declines in construction and retail. This suggests a potential mismatch between the wages employers are willing to pay and the skills of the workers available to be hired.
Consumer borrowing up
U.S. consumers increased their borrowing in August in the category that covers auto loans and student loans but cut back on their credit card borrowing. Overall borrowing rose $13.5 billion in August following a revised $21.6 billion increase in July, the Federal Reserve reported Tuesday. The gains have pushed total consumer debt to a record level of $3.25 trillion.
Rising levels of consumer borrowing coupled with strong employment growth are viewed as a good sign that consumers are more confident about taking on debt to finance purchases. Consumer spending accounts for 70 percent of economic activity.