Economists' Outlook

Housing stats and analysis from NAR's research experts.

Jobless Claims Below 300K for 19 Straight Weeks as of July 11

This blog post was written by Erin Fitzpatrick. Erin is a Summer Research Intern and is currently studying at George Washington University pursuing a B.S. in Economics and a B.A. in Political Science.

  • Initial claims for unemployment insurance decreased in the week ending July 11 to 281,000, a decrease of 15,000 from the previous week’s level. This is the 19th straight week that initial claims have fallen below 300,000. The 4-week moving average increased slightly to 282,500, but is still below 300,000. Analysts consider a level below 300,000 to be indicative of a healthy job market, with fewer claims signifying fewer layoffs and greater job stability.
  •  States with the largest decreases occurred in New Jersey (-3,276), Texas (-2,405), Connecticut (-2,180), Maryland (-1,304), and South Carolina (-905). States showing the largest increases include Michigan (+9,961), New York (+6,488), California (+5,714), Ohio (+3,190), and Missouri (+2,661).
  • If job losses continue at this level, NAR expects 2.5 million net new jobs in 2015 and 5.3 million in existing home sales. 

image Erin

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