Eye On Housing
Sluggish Rebound in Single-Family Permits in December
Over the year 2019, the total number of single-family permits issued year-to-date (YTD) nationwide reached 854,158. On a year-over-year (YoY) basis, this is a 0.2% increase over the December 2018 level of 852,856. Year-to-date ending in December, single-family permits reported declines in three regions and an increase in the South. The Northeast reported the steepest decline by 6.8%. The… Read More ›
Recent Posts
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Decline in Energy Prices in January
In January, core inflation increased, while headline inflation slipped as energy prices declined. The Consumer Price Index (CPI), released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), rose by 0.1% in January on a seasonally adjusted basis, following a 0.2% increase in December. Excluding the volatile food and energy components, the “core” CPI increased by 0.2% in January, after rising 0.1%… Read More ›
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Los Angeles Takes Top Spot as Nation’s Least Affordable Housing Market
San Francisco, which has been the nation’s least affordable major housing market for the past two years, was supplanted by Los Angeles in the fourth quarter of 2019, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index (HOI). In all, 63.2 percent of new and existing homes sold between the beginning of October and end of… Read More ›
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Mortgage Delinquencies Reach Historic Low
In the fourth quarter of 2019, the delinquency rate for mortgage loans on single-family homes1 decreased to 3.8% of all loans outstanding, according to the latest iteration of the Mortgage Bankers Association’s National Delinquency Survey. This is the lowest it has been since the series started in 1979. The delinquency rate includes loans that are at least one payment past… Read More ›
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Renewed Hiring in Construction
Data from the BLS Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) indicate that construction job openings posted a monthly increase in December due to renewed hiring in the industry following the housing soft patch of 2018 and 2019. The estimated number of job openings increased from the November total (217,000) to 239,000 in December, after reaching a post-Great Recession high of… Read More ›
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IRS Clarifies How to Calculate Income Limits for LIHTC Average Income Set Aside
The Internal Revenue Service recently released revenue ruling 2020-4 which instructs taxpayers how to calculate Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) income limits should they choose to use the income averaging minimum set-aside test to meet LIHTC eligibility and compliance requirements. This test was created by the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2018 (the 2018 Act) to complement the existing tests established… Read More ›
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Consumer Credit Expanded in 2019
The Federal Reserve’s latest G.19 Consumer Credit Report shows rising trends in consumer credit, excluding loans secured by real estate, through December 2019. In 2019, consumer credit increased 4.8 percent, with revolving and nonrevolving credit increasing 4.3 percent and 4.8 percent, respectively. In December, consumer credit increased at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5 percent from the previous month,… Read More ›
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Cost of Constructing a Home in 2019
The NAHB recently published its latest Cost of Construction Survey. Results show that 61.1% of the average home sale price consisted of construction costs in 2019, up from 55.6% in 2017, but similar to the 2013 and 2015 breakdowns of 61.7% and 61.8%, respectively. The finished lot cost was the second largest cost at 18.5% of the sales price, down from… Read More ›
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A Strong Start for 2020
The labor market started the new year with a solid gain. Total payroll employment increased by 225,000 and the unemployment rate was 3.6% in January. Residential construction employment increased by 20,200 in January, the largest gain in the past twelve months. Total construction industry (both residential and nonresidential) employment totaled about 7.6 million in January. The Bureau of Labor Statistics… Read More ›
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Top Challenges for Builders: Cost/Availability of Labor in 2019 & 2020
Cost and availability of labor topped the list of problems builders faced in 2019, and is expected to return to the number one spot in 2020, according to special questions on the December survey for the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index. The survey results showed that cost and availability of labor were a significant issue for 87% of builders last… Read More ›