Eye On Housing
The National Association of Home Builders’ (NAHB) single-family 55+ Housing Market Index (55+ HMI) dropped 12 points to 55 in the first quarter of 2017, after an unusually high index reading of 67 in the fourth quarter of 2016. Despite the drop, the 55+ HMI still remains above 50, which means that more builders view conditions as good than poor… Read More ›
NAHB analysis of Census Construction Spending data shows that total private residential construction spending grew 1.2% in March to a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of $503.4 billion. This is 7.5% higher than a year ago and represents a new post-recession high. The monthly gains are largely attributed to the strong growth of private construction spending on both multifamily and… Read More ›
Contracts for new home sales expanded by 5.8% in March, according to estimates from the joint data release of HUD and the Census Bureau. The growth in sales continues along a positive trend for the market, which is supported by solid job growth, improving household formations, continuing favorable housing affordability conditions, and tight existing home inventory. The seasonally adjusted annual pace for March new single-family… Read More ›
Total housing starts declined in March, after a strong pace was recorded in February. Total starts were down almost 7%, falling to a 1.215 million seasonally adjusted annual rate, according to the joint data release from the Census Bureau and HUD. Single-family starts posted a monthly decline of 6% in March, falling to an 821,000 annual rate. The February annualized rate, 875,000, was the fastest monthly pace since… Read More ›
NAHB analysis of Census Construction Spending data shows that total private residential construction spending grew 1.8% in February to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $484.7 billion. It was up by 6.4% from one year earlier and reached the highest level since August 2007. Multifamily construction spending continued its record breaking pace to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $64.5… Read More ›
Contracts for new home sales expanded by 6.1% in February, according to estimates from the joint data release of HUD and the Census Bureau. The growth in sales continues along a positive trend for the market, which is supported by solid job growth, improving household formations, continuing favorable housing affordability conditions, and tight existing home inventory. The seasonally adjusted annual pace for February new single-family… Read More ›
Total housing starts posted an increase in February, with a solid gain for single-family construction and ongoing elevated levels of multifamily development. Total starts were up 3%, rising to a 1.288 million seasonally adjusted annual rate, according to the joint data release from the Census Bureau and HUD. Single-family starts recorded a monthly increase of 6.5% in February, rising to an 872,000 annual rate,… Read More ›
Builder confidence in the market for newly-built single-family homes jumped six points to a level of 71 on the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI). This is the highest reading since June 2005. While builders are clearly confident, we expect some moderation in the index moving forward. Builders continue to face a number of challenges, including… Read More ›
Results from a survey administered by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) indicate that mortgage rates rose in January 2017*. Over the month, contract rates on mortgages used to purchase single-family newly constructed homes increased by 24 basis points to 4.02 percent. Although the monthly change reported by FHFA contrasted with a report by Freddie Mac, the results of the… Read More ›
The volume of residential construction loans increased by 1.8% during the fourth quarter of 2016, marking 15 consecutive quarters of growth. However, the growth rate at the end of the year was the smallest since the start of 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 base have helped expand residential construction… Read More ›