By Bill Lyons | Updated on February 5, 2024

Jobs report gives Fed green light for more rate hikes

The Federal Reserve is almost certainly raising interest rates in March. The only question now is by how much.

The strong January jobs report is the last piece of evidence the Fed needs to show that inflation pressures are not going away anytime soon. With that in mind, traders are now pricing in a 100% chance of a rate hike next month.  “If the Fed is inclined to do a 50-basis-point rate hike in March, this jobs data doesn’t stand in their way,” said Tom Graff, head of fixed income for Brown Advisory. “And there is more space for the Fed to keep hiking over the long term.”

The Fed does have to tread cautiously, though. If it acts too quickly or raises rates too aggressively, it could choke the economic recovery. But sitting by while prices keep rising isn’t a great option either.  Read more here.

U.S. home sellers made a pretty penny in 2021, with the nationwide realized profit growing by 45% year-over-year, according to a new analysis published by real estate data vendor ATTOM this week.  Per ATTOM’s year-end home sales report, on average home sellers raked in a profit of $94,092 on a typical home sale last year, up from $64,931 in 2020.  For comparison sake, in 2019 a home seller’s realized profit averaged out to about $55,000, the report said.

ATTOM noted that rising home prices and profits were driven primarily by a combination of historically low interest rates and a desire by many households to trade congested virus-prone areas for the perceived safety and wider spaces of a single-family home.  (The national median home price also grew by 16.9% in 2021 to $301,000—an annual record, the report added.)  “As [home buyers] chased a tight supply of homes for sale, prices spiked and so did seller profits,” ATTOM said.

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Bill Lyons

Bill Lyons is the Founder, CEO & President of Griffin Funding. Founded in 2013, Griffin Funding is a national boutique mortgage lender focusing on delivering 5-star service to its clients. Mr. Lyons has 23 years of experience in the mortgage business. Lyons is seen as an industry leader and expert in real estate finance. Lyons has been featured in Forbes, Inc., Wall Street Journal, HousingWire, and more. As a member of the Mortgage Bankers Association, Lyons is able to keep up with important changes in the industry to deliver the most value to Griffin's clients. Under Lyons' leadership, Griffin Funding has made the Inc. 5000 fastest-growing companies list five times in its 11 years in business.