Eye On Housing
Author Archives
-
Builder Confidence Remains Solid in June
Builder confidence in the market for newly-built single-family homes weakened slightly in June, down two points to a level of 67 from a downwardly revised May reading of 69 on the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI). Builder confidence levels have remained consistently sound this year, reflecting the ongoing gradual recovery of the housing market. As… Read More ›
-
Fed Raises Rates, Announces Balance Sheet Reduction Plan
The Federal Reserve’s monetary policy committee announced two moves today with implications for housing. Neither represented a surprise for markets. First, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) announced the second rate increase for the short-term federal funds rate for 2017, raising the target rate to a 1% to 1.25% range. While the Fed continues to raise short-term rates, the current stance of… Read More ›
-
Construction Job Openings Jump in April
The count of unfilled jobs in the construction sector climbed in April, rising to the highest level since September of last year. According to the BLS Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) and NAHB analysis, the number of open construction sector jobs (on a seasonally adjusted basis) stood at 203,000 in April. The cycle high was 238,000, set in July of last year. The open position rate (job… Read More ›
-
Slower Growth for AD&C Loans
The volume of residential construction loans increased by 1.6% during the first quarter of 2017, marking 16 consecutive quarters of growth. However, the growth rate for lending during the fourth quarter of 2016 and the start of 2017 were the slowest since early 2013. 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… Read More ›
-
Decline for April Sales Masks 2017 Gains
Contracts for new single-family home sales fell more than expected in April, declining 11.4% to a 569,000 seasonally adjusted annual rate according to estimates from the joint data release of HUD and the Census Bureau. The decline occurred after solid, positive revisions for new home sales for the first three months of the year. All told, total new home sales for 2017 stand at 210,000, a 11.3%… Read More ›
-
Multifamily Built-for-Rent Share Remains Elevated
An elevated market share for new rental multifamily homes is holding typical apartment size below levels seen during the pre-recession period. However, as multifamily developers build more for-sale housing units in the years ahead, the average size of multifamily homes is likely to rise. The recent pattern of change in the size of new multifamily units stands in contrast to the post-recession increase in the size… Read More ›
-
Decline for Single-Family Built-for-Rent Construction
The number of single-family homes built-for-rent fell slightly at the start of 2017, falling to 6,000 for the quarter. Over the last four quarters, total production of this type of housing was 33,000 homes. 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 measured on… Read More ›
-
Custom Home Building Market Growth Slows
NAHB’s analysis of Census Data from the Quarterly Starts and Completions by Purpose and Design survey indicates a slowing of the growth rate for the custom home building market. Over the last four quarter period, ending with the first quarter of 2017, there were 168,000 total custom single-family home starts, an increase of almost 2% over the previous four quarters. Custom… Read More ›
-
Townhouse Construction Growth Slowed at Start of 2017
According to NAHB analysis of the most recent Census data of Starts and Completions by Purpose and Design, townhouse construction starts continued to grow on a year-over-year basis, although that growth rate has slowed recently. Over the four quarter period ending with the first quarter of 2017, townhouse starts totaled 98,000, a more than 4% gain over the prior year total…. Read More ›
-
New Single-Family Home Size Continues to Trend Down
After increasing and leveling off in recent years, new single-family home size continued along a general trend of decreasing size during the start of 2017. This change marks a reversal of the trend that had been in place as builders focused on the higher end of the market during the recovery. As the entry-level market expands, including growth for townhouses, typical… Read More ›