Builder confidence fell for the eighth straight month in August as elevated interest rates, ongoing supply chain problems and high home prices continue to exacerbate housing affordability challenges. In another
The prices of building materials rose 0.4% in July (not seasonally adjusted) even as softwood lumber prices increased 2.3%, according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) report. Prices have surged
Over the first six months of 2022, the total number of single-family permits issued year-to-date (YTD) nationwide reached 567,798. On a year-over-year (YoY) basis, this is a 3.6% decline over
During the second quarter of 2022, credit became both tighter and more costly on loans for Acquisition, Development & Construction (AD&C) according to NAHB’s Survey on AD&C Financing. The average
Rising mortgage rates, high inflation, low existing inventory and elevated home prices contributed to housing affordability falling to its lowest point since the Great Recession in the second quarter of
Per the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) survey through the week ending August 5th, total mortgage activity increased slightly and the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) rate rose four basis points
Consumer prices eased slightly from a 40-year high in July as declines in energy prices offset increases in food and shelter indexes. Despite this improvement, inflation remains above an 8%
According to NAHB analysis of the Survey of Construction (SOC), new single-family starts expanded at a fast pace in 2021. Nationally, 1,133,145 new single-family units were started in 2021, 14%
The construction labor market is cooling off as economic activity slows in response to tighter monetary policy per the latest job openings data. Given the Fed’s dual mandate of fighting
Job growth accelerated in July amid higher inflation and growing economic pressures. Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 528,000, and the unemployment rate edged down to 3.5% in July. Construction
Headship rates for all age groups have been trending lower over the last two decades, with important implications for the demand for home building. The latest Current Population Survey (CPS)
An earlier post revealed that 63% of buyers who were actively engaged in the process of finding a home in the 2nd quarter of 2022 have spent 3+ months searching
Housing’s share of the economy edged lower at the end of the first half of 2022. For the second quarter of 2022, overall GDP declined at a 0.9% annual rate, following
In the second quarter iteration of the Federal Reserve Board’s Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey (SLOOS) on Bank Lending Practices, banks reported largely unchanged lending standards across all residential real
The share of prospective home buyers who are actively engaged in the process to buy a home rose to 49% in the second quarter of 2022, after declining for three
The Census Bureau’s Housing Vacancy Survey (CPS/HVS) reported the U.S. homeownership rate at 65.8% in the second quarter of 2022, which is statistically unchanged from the last quarter reading (65.4%).
For the first time since 2020, affordability expectations improved in the second quarter of 2022. After rising steadily for five straight quarters, the share of buyers who can only afford
As mortgage rates reached 3-year high, private residential construction spending decreased 1.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of $923.7 billion in June, according to NAHB’s analysis of the