Eye On Housing
Author Archives
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Builder Confidence Slips One Point, Remains in Solid Territory
Builder confidence in the market for newly-built single-family homes edged down one point to a level of 69 in April on the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) but remains on firm ground. Strong demand for housing is keeping builders optimistic about future market conditions. However, builders are facing supply-side constraints, such as a lack of… Read More ›
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Construction Job Openings Higher Year-Over-Year
The count of unfilled jobs in the construction sector declined in February, but remains higher than a year ago. According to the BLS Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) and NAHB analysis, the number of open construction sector jobs came in at 196,000 in February. The post-recession high count of open, unfilled construction jobs was 255,000 in July of… Read More ›
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Housing Share of GDP
With the release of the final estimate of fourth quarter 2017 GDP growth (a 2.5% annual growth rate), housing’s share of gross domestic product (GDP) rose slightly to 15.4%. The home building and remodeling component – residential fixed investment – also increased slightly, rising to 3.5%. Housing-related activities contribute to GDP in two basic ways. The first is through residential fixed investment (RFI). RFI is effectively the measure… Read More ›
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February New Home Sales Flat After Upward Revisions to Prior Months
Contracts for new, single-family home sales were effectively flat in February, inching down 0.6% to a 618,000 seasonally adjusted annual rate, according to estimates from the joint release of HUD and the Census Bureau. Matching solid readings of the NAHB/Wells Fargo HMI measure of home builder confidence, new home sales data for prior months were revised up. For example, the initial January estimate… Read More ›
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Construction Job Openings Near Post-Recession High
The count of unfilled jobs in the construction sector increased in January, nearing a post-recession high set in July of 2017. According to the BLS Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) and NAHB analysis, the number of open construction sector jobs increased to 250,000 at the start of the year. The post-recession high count of open, unfilled construction jobs… Read More ›
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Multifamily Decline In February
Total housing starts declined in February, led by a reversion to trend for multifamily development. Starts fell 7% to a 1.24 million seasonally adjusted annual rate, according to the joint data release from the Census Bureau and HUD. The pace of single-family starts expanded in February, rising 2.9% to a 902,000 seasonally adjusted annual rate. The three-month moving average for single-family… Read More ›
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Builder Confidence Remains on Solid Footing
Builder confidence in the market for newly-built single-family homes edged down one point to a level of 70 in March from a downwardly revised February reading on the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI). This is the fourth consecutive month at or above a level of 70 for the HMI, an indication of strong single-family housing… Read More ›
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AD&C Loan Growth Points Toward More Building
The volume of residential construction loans increased by 1.6% during the fourth quarter of 2017, marking 19 consecutive quarters of growth. Furthermore, stabilization for the year-over-year growth rate is an indicator of continued, modest growth for single-family construction. Tight availability of acquisition, development and construction (AD&C) loans has been a limiting factor for home building growth, but easing credit conditions and a growing loan base have helped expand residential construction… Read More ›
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Multifamily Built-for-Rent Share Remains Elevated
The market share of rental multifamily construction starts ticked back up to an elevated level of 95% in the fourth quarter of 2017, according to NAHB analysis of Census data. In contrast, the historical low share of 47% was set during the third quarter of 2005, during the condo building boom. The average share of 80% was recorded during the 1980-2002… Read More ›
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Small Gains for Single-Family Built-for-Rent Construction
The number of single-family homes built-for-rent increased during 2017. Over the year, construction starts of this type of housing totalled 36,000 homes, compared to 34,000 for 2016. There were 11,000 starts during the final quarter of 2017. According to data from the Census Bureau’s Quarterly Starts and Completions by Purpose and Design and NAHB analysis, the market share of single-family homes built-for-rent, as… Read More ›