Home resales slipped for the 3rd straight month, according to data from the National Association of REALTORS®. Sales volume is at an eight-month low.

Builders are busy once again. According to the Census Bureau, Single-Family Housing Starts rose to 453,000 on a seasonally-adjusted, annualized basis in June — a 9 percent spike from the month prior and the highest reading in 3 seasons.

Homebuilder confidence is bouncing back. One month after an unceremonious dip highlighted by poor sales figures and dim prospects for the future, the National Association of Homebuilder’s Housing Market Index rebounded two points to 15 in July.

Mortgage markets worsened last week as concerns for the global economy drove new rounds of “safe haven” buying.

The American Consumer will not be deterred. Despite worsening jobless figures and an increase in the Cost of Living, Retail Sales are climbing.

According to foreclosure-tracking firm RealtyTrac, the number of foreclosure filings dropped 29 percent nationwide on an annual basis in June.

The Federal Reserve released its June 2011 Federal Open Market Committee meeting minutes Tuesday. It contained no surprises.

More commonly called APR, Annual Percentage Rate is a government-mandated mortgage comparison tool. It measures the total cost of borrowing over the life of a loan into dollars-and-cents.

Mortgage markets improved in roller coaster-like trading last week. And, not surprisingly, the week’s two big stories were the same two stories roiling mortgage markets since March — Greece and Jobs.

The year is half-over. It’s an opportune time to take stock of analyst predictions made at the start of the year, and to recognize that the “experts” can be wrong as often as they are right.