According to the latest press release from Freddie Mac, the average rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage has now risen to approximately 7.25%. As the data posted on NAHB’s priced-out web page shows, at this rate only about 27.5 million (out of a total of 134.7 million) U.S. households could afford to buy a median-priced…
According to the Federal Reserve Board’s April 2024 Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey (SLOOS), lending standards tightened for all commercial real estate (CRE) loan categories and most residential real estate (RRE) categories in the first quarter of 2024. With the Federal Reserve leaving their federal funds rate unchanged during their last meeting, demand for RRE and CRE…
In March, residential building workers’ wages continued to grow but at a relatively slower pace. After an acceleration of a 6.2% increase in the previous month, the year-over-year (YOY) growth rate for residential building worker wages slowed to 5.1% in March. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) report, average hourly earnings (AHE) for…
NAHB’s latest study on consumer preferences—What Home Buyers Really Want Study*— asked about the features and amenities buyers want in the home, but also about the type of community where they would like to live. The question is important because the home that successfully appeals to buyers doesn’t exist in a vacuum—it sits inside a…
Job growth slowed in April, and the unemployment rate increased to 3.9%, suggesting a cooling labor market after a strong start to the year. Additionally, wage growth continued to slow. In April, wages grew at a 3.9% year-over-year (YOY) growth rate, down 0.7 percentage points from a year ago. It marks the lowest YOY wage…
Reflecting persistent long-term labor challenges, wages in construction continue to rise, often outpacing and exceeding typical earnings in other industries. Not seasonally adjusted (NSA) average hourly earnings (AHE) in construction increased 5% since a year ago and approached the $38 mark in March 2024, according to the latest Current Employment Statistics (CES) report from the…
The Federal Reserve’s monetary policy committee held constant the federal funds rate constant at a top target of 5.5% at the conclusion of its April-May meeting. In its statement, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) noted: Recent indicators suggest that economic activity has continued to expand at a solid pace. Job gains have remained strong,…
