FRI News and Press, First Trust S&P REIT Index Fund From 01/17/23

Summary Looking at total returns for 2022 compared to the -18.1% loss for the S&P 500, income-focused equity investments generally held up well, except for REITs. MLPs provided standout performance in 2022, gaining over 30% on a total-return basis. Now that bond benchmarks are y...

Summary U.S. equity markets posted broad-based gains after the closely-watched CPI inflation report showed signs of easing inflationary pressures, strengthening the case for the Fed to slow its pace of rate hikes. Pushing its year-to-date gains to above 4% following a dismal year of per...

Summary Home prices have started to correct as interest rates rose sharply in 2022. More inventory and few buyers will equate to a further price drop in the coming year. As home price depreciation gains traction, more homeowners will be dragged into selling to retain what value they...

Summary Flying under-the-radar amid recession concerns and the looming shadow cast by their persistently-troubled mall peers, the outlook for Strip Center REITs has improved considerably over the past year. The combination of near-zero new development and positive net absorption since e...

Summary The main determinants of housing demand in the short run are the level and direction of mortgage rates and the strength of the job market. Homebuilders have responded to the drop in new home sales by reducing housing starts, and this response is likely to continue this year, unt...

Summary Mortgage applications to purchase a home are a forward-looking indicator of where home sales volume will be. Mortgage lenders have spent the last 12 months laying off people and shutting down divisions. Some smaller operations have shut down entirely. What the real estate an...

Summary The cost of the mortgage payment to live in the median new home sold in November 2022 would consume 46.3% of the wages and salaries earned by a household in the middle of all income-earners in the U.S. The ratio of median household income to the median new home sale price droppe...

Summary Arguably one of the greatest frustrations for investors over the past year of rampant inflation was the dismal performance of real assets regarded as inflation hedges and their positive correlations to the returns of nominal assets, such as conventional government bonds. Even th...

Summary Manufactured Housing REITs snapped an incredible streak of nine straight years of outperformance over the REIT Index in 2022, impacted by headwinds from higher interest rates and hurricane-related disruptions. Despite their REIT-leading growth rates, Manufactured Housing ("MH") ...

Summary The U.S. new home market enters 2023 in distress. Political Calculations' initial estimate of the market capitalization of new homes for November 2022, the data for which was released just before the holidays, is $25.35 billion. This time-shifted, trailing-year average is 15...