The most recent data release from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) showed that personal income increased 0.3% in March. The pace of personal income growth slowed after reaching a 0.8% monthly gain in October. Gains in personal income are largely driven by increases in compensation, personal income receipts on assets, and rental income. Real…
Relatively lower interest rates (compared to fall 2022), slowing growth in home prices, and builder incentives are making an impact on buyers’ affordability expectations. In the first quarter of 2023, 73% of buyers reported being able to afford less than half the homes for-sale in their markets, down from a record high of 87% in…
Housing’s share of the economy moved lower at the end of the first quarter of 2023. Overall GDP increased at a 1.1% annual rate, following a 2.6% increase in the fourth quarter of 2022 and 3.2% increase in the third quarter of 2022. Despite overall GDP increasing, housing’s share of GDP decreased to 15.8%, below…
In the first quarter of 2023, economic growth slowed to an annual rate of 1.1%, amid rising interest rates and an ongoing banking crisis. This quarter’s growth was dragged down by decreases in private inventory investment and residential fixed investment. Private inventory investment subtracted 2.26 percentage points off the headline growth rate for overall GDP,…
After souring significantly in the final quarter of 2022, buyers’ expectations of housing availability edged up slightly in the first quarter of 2023, with 26% expecting the home search to get easier in the months ahead, just ahead of the 24% a quarter earlier. Despite the mild improvement, buyers’ perceptions of housing availability remain well…
Despite a housing market slowdown but reflecting persistent long-term labor challenges, wages in construction continue to rise, often outpacing and exceeding typical earnings in other industries. According to the latest Current Employment Statistics (CES) report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), average hourly earnings (AHE) in construction vary greatly across 43 states that reported…
NAHB analysis of the most recent Quarterly Sales by Price and Financing report published by the U.S. Census Bureau reveals that the share of new home sales backed by FHA loans jumped from 8.4% to 11.7% in the first quarter of 2023. It is the largest share since 2007 but remains 30% lower than the post-Great…
