Fannie Mae Sees Jobs, Easier Terms Sustaining Home Sales
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More jobs and easier loan terms will boost demand for new mortgages in the second half of this year as homebuyers shrug off higher interest rates, according to a Fannie Mae forecast issued today.
Lending for mortgages to purchase homes will increase 21 percent for the final six months of 2013 to $341 billion from $282 billion in the first half, according to an advance copy of the forecast obtained by Bloomberg News. Total U.S. residential mortgage debt probably will increase 1.1 percent in 2013 to $10 trillion, followed by another increase to $10.2 trillion in 2014, Fannie Mae estimated.