Consumer price index
Consumer spending increased 0.2 percent year over year in April, according to the Consumer Price Index report the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released Tuesday. The monthly report looks at how much city dwellers pay for goods and services. Buyers spent more money on cars and clothes, with researchers seeing a decline in food and energy.
Mortgage delinquencies
Mortgage delinquencies on conventional residential loans rose 4 percent from January through March, up from the last quarter of 2024, according to the latest Mortgage Bankers Association’s National Delinquency Survey released Tuesday.
“Foreclosure inventories increased across all three loan types, and particularly for VA loans," Marina Walsh, the association's vice president of industry analysis, said in a statement. "Despite certain segments of borrowers having difficulty making their mortgage payments, the overall national delinquency and foreclosure rates remain below historical averages for now.”
Tribal communities receive $1.1 billion
Native American communities got a big boost in housing funding Tuesday. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development gave $1.1 billion in funding to 593 tribal communities across the country. The grants range from $110,367 to the Kluti Kaah tribe to $132 million to the Navajo Nation in Arizona. The funding comes through the Indian Housing Block Grant intended to support housing development, management and renovations.
Highest-paid jobs in construction
Money-driven job hunters got clarity on Tuesday on what professions paid the most within the construction industry. Lawyers topped the list for the 20 highest-paying earners in the field, according to an annual report by the National Association of Home Builders. The report gathered data from the May 2024 Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics.
The highest paid non-trade workers, lawyers, earn from $116,830 to $238,720. Construction managers landed at the bottom of the ranking, drawing $81,780 on the low end. Some earned as much as $134,920.
"Among construction trades, elevator installers and repairers topped the median wages list with half of them earning over $108,130 a year, and the top 25% making at least $133,370," according to the report. Glaziers earned the least, from $46,070.