Eye On Housing
Builder Confidence Holds Firm in November
Builder confidence in the market for newly-built single-family homes edged one point lower to 70 in November, according to the latest National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI). The past two months mark the highest sentiment levels in 2019. Single-family builders are currently reporting ongoing positive conditions, spurred in part by low mortgage rates and continued job… Read More ›
Recent Posts
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Declines in Single-Family Permits Across the Country in September
Over the first nine months of 2019, the total number of single-family permits issued year-to-date (YTD) nationwide reached 647,244. On a year-over-year (YoY) basis, this is a 2.6% decline over the September 2018 level of 664,665. Year-to-date ending in September, single-family permits reported declines in all four regions. Midwest reported the steepest decline by 6.4%. The West, Northeast, the South,… Read More ›
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Minority Homeownership Rate Increases in Third Quarter
According to a new data release from the Census’ Housing Vacancies and Homeownership Survey (CPS/HVS), the minority homeownership rate posted an increase in the third quarter of 2019 to 48.3 percent, up 0.9 percentage points from the third quarter of 2018 (Figure 1). This year-over-year gain is higher than the gain in the overall U.S. homeownership rate, which rose 0.4… Read More ›
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Building Materials Prices Hold Steady in October
Prices paid for goods used in residential construction held steady in October (not seasonally adjusted) according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Building materials prices have declined an average of 0.2% per month over the last 12 months, and the price of goods used in residential construction has risen 1.7% in 2019…. Read More ›
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Southwest Led GDP Growth in the Second Quarter of 2019
Real gross domestic product (GDP) increased in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, in the second quarter 2019 compared to the previous quarter. The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis reported the real GDP growth rates, measured on a seasonally adjusted annual rate basis, ranged from 4.7% in Texas to 0.5% in Hawaii. Nationwide, real GDP growth increased to 2.0%… Read More ›
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Fixed-Rate Mortgage Activity Shows Upswing
The Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Application Survey, for the week ending November 8, 2019, showed a 5% increase in its Purchase Index and 13% increase in its Refinance Index from a week earlier on a seasonally adjusted basis. This increase occurred despite the slight increase in the 30-year fixed mortgage rate to 4.03%, thus reflecting growing optimism concerning the economy… Read More ›
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Consumer Prices Rebound in October
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 0.4% in October on a seasonally adjusted basis, after being unchanged in September. It was the largest monthly increase in the CPI since March 2019. Excluding the volatile food and energy components, the “core” CPI increased by 0.2% in October, following a 0.1% increase in… Read More ›
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A Minority of Home Buyers Expect House Search to Get Easier Soon
Only 21% of prospective home buyers (people planning a home purchase) expect that finding the right home to buy will get easier in the months ahead, according to NAHB’s Housing Trends Report for the third quarter 2019. That share is slightly better than the 19% who had the same expectation a year earlier. On the other hand, a majority of… Read More ›
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Only 12% of Adults Plan to Buy Home in Next 12 Months
Only 12% of adults are considering the purchase of a home within the next 12 months, according to NAHB’s Housing Trends Report for the third quarter of 2019. This share of ‘prospective home buyers’ is essentially unchanged from where it stood a year earlier, at 13%. For the majority of these buyers (60%), this will be their first time buying… Read More ›
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Lot Values Hit Record Highs
According to NAHB’s analysis of the Census Bureau’s Survey of Construction (SOC) data, median single-family lot prices outpaced inflation once again (4.4% vs 2.4%) and reached new record high in 2018, with half of the lots selling at or above $49,500. The most dramatic rise in lot values is observed in the West South Central division where median lot values… Read More ›