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The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) has released its statement regarding its December 2015 meeting. The Committee decided to maintain the target range for the federal funds rate at 1/4 to 1/2 percent. The stance of monetary policy remains accommodative, thereby supporting further improvement in labor market conditions and a return to 2 percent inflation. In addition, the FOMC reaffirmed its "Statement on Longer-Run Goals and Monetary Policy Strategy," with a revision to clarify that it views its inflation objective as symmetric, and with an updated reference to participants' estimates of the longer-run normal unemployment rate in the most recent Summary of Economic Projections (December 2015).

Sales of new single-family houses in December 2015 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 544,000, according to estimates released jointly by HUD and the U.S. Census Bureau. This is 10.8 percent above the revised November rate of 491,000 and 9.9 percent above the December 2014 estimate of 495,000.The median sales price of new houses sold in December 2015 was $288,900; the average sales price was $346,400. The seasonally adjusted estimate of new houses for sale at the end of December was 237,000. This represents a supply of 5.2 months at the current sales rate. An estimated 501,000 new homes were sold in 2015. This is 14.5 percent (±4.5%) above the 2014 figure of 437,000.

The Bureau has posted a blog article with an updated list of consumer reporting companies and a reminder to consumers that they have the right to request their information maintained by the credit reporting companies. The article also provides tips on fact-checking the reports and a link to a 2012 CFPB bulletin that highlights the legal requirement that certain consumer reporting companies must establish and manage "a streamlined process for consumers to request consumer reports."

The November 2015 House Price Index has been released by the Federal Housing Finance Authority (FHFA). U.S. house prices rose in November, up 0.5 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from the October monthly House Price Index (HPI). The FHFA monthly HPI is calculated using home sales price information from mortgages sold to, or guaranteed by, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. From November 2014 to November 2015, house prices were up 5.9 percent. The index levels for October and November 2015 exceeded the prior peak level from March 2007. For the nine census divisions, seasonally adjusted monthly price changes from October 2015 to November 2015 ranged from -0.4 percent in the West South Central division to +1.8 percent in the Mountain division. The 12-month changes were all positive, ranging from +2.6 percent in the Middle Atlantic division to +10.0 percent in the Mountain division.

HUD and the Rockefeller Foundation have announced the winners of the $1 billion National Disaster Resilience Competition (NDRC). HUD will provide funding for resilient housing and infrastructure projects to states and communities that were impacted by major disasters between 2011 and 2013. The NDRC was developed in response to requests from state, local, and tribal leaders seeking to build with resilience and better prepare their communities for the impacts of climate change, following the model of the Rebuild by Design Competition, and the recommendations of the Hurricane Sandy Rebuilding Task Force. The NDRC was designed to promote risk assessment, stakeholder engagement, and resilience planning in communities where the risks of disaster are projected to increase substantially due to climate change.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) took action on January 21, 2016, against Herbies Auto Sales, a buy-here pay-here used car dealer, for abusive financing schemes, hiding auto finance charges and misleading consumers. Herbies will pay $700,000 in restitution to harmed consumers, with a suspended civil penalty of $100,000. See our Penalty Page entry for details.

HUD and the Census Bureau have released residential construction statistics for December 2015. Privately owned housing units authorized by building permits in December were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,232,000. This is 3.9 percent below the revised November rate and 14.4 percent above December 2014. Single-family authorizations in December were at a rate of 740,000; 1.8 percent above the revised November figure. Authorizations of units in buildings with five units or more were at a rate of 455,000 in December. Privately owned housing starts in December were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,149,000, 2.5 percent below the revised November estimate and 6.4 percent above December 2014. Single-family housing starts in December were at a rate of 768,000; 3.3 percent below the revised November figure. The December rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 365,000. Privately owned housing completions in December were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,013,000. 5.6 percent above the revised November estimate and is 7.9 percent above December 2014. Single-family housing completions in December were at a rate of 696,000; 8.8 percent above the revised November rate.

NCUA Chairman Matz has announced she will host her fifth annual joint webinar with CFPB Director Cordray on February 9, beginning at 3 p.m. ET.

The Federal Reserve Board has published the January 2016 Beige Book, which summarizes the current economic conditions in each Federal Reserve District based on interviews with key business contacts, economists, market experts, and other sources. Nine of the 12 Reserve Bank districts cited modest to moderate growth, with the New York and Kansas City districts reporting virtually flat activity. Growth was strongest in the Boston, Atlanta and San Francisco districts.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency has published in today's Federal Register two final rules identifying communities where the sale of flood insurance has been authorized under the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) that are scheduled for suspension for noncompliance with the floodplain management requirements of the program.

• To be suspended on February 3, 2016: Listed communities in the states of Arizona, Tennessee and Wisconsin
• To be suspended on February 17, 2016: Listed communities in the states of Illinois, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Texas