Single-Family Starts Down on Economic and Tariff Uncertainty
Economic uncertainty stemming from tariff issues, elevated mortgage rates and rising building material costs pushed…
Single-Family Starts Down on Economic and Tariff Uncertainty
Economic uncertainty stemming from tariff issues, elevated mortgage rates and rising building material costs pushed single-family housing starts lower in April. Overall housing starts increased 1.6% in April to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.36 million units, according to a report from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census…
Cost of Credit Eases for Builders and Developers
The cost of credit for residential Land Acquisition, Development & Construction (AD&C) eased in the first quarter of 2025, according to NAHB’s survey on AD&C Financing. During the quarter, the average contract interest rate declined on three of the four categories of loans tracked in the NAHB survey: from 8.48% in 2024 Q4 to 8.23%…
Soft Spring Selling Season Takes a Toll on Builder Confidence
Builder confidence fell sharply in May on growing uncertainties stemming from elevated interest rates, tariff concerns, building material cost uncertainty and the cloudy economic outlook. However, 90% of the responses received in May were tabulated prior to the May 12 announcement that the United States and China agreed to slash tariffs for 90 days to…
Permit Activity Declines in March 2025
Permits continue a downhill trend for the third month in a row. Over the first three months of 2025, the total number of single-family permits issued year-to-date (YTD) nationwide reached 232,221. On a year-over-year (YoY) basis, this is a decline of 3.8% over the March 2024 level of 241311. For multifamily, the total number of…
Inflation Eased Again in April
Inflation slowed to a 4-year low in April while shelter inflation remained elevated. Despite the easing, inflation may pick up in the coming months as possible inflationary pressure from enacted tariffs and other policy uncertainties continues to threaten economic growth and complicate the Fed’s path to its 2% target. Meanwhile, housing inflation remains elevated, but it…
Residential Mortgages Experience Weaker Demand in First Quarter
Overall demand for residential mortgages was weaker while lending standards for most types of residential mortgages were essentially unchanged according to the Federal Reserve Board’s April 2025 Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey (SLOOS). For commercial real estate (CRE) loans, lending standards for construction & development were moderately tighter, while demand was modestly weaker. However, for multifamily loans within…
Highest Paid Occupations in Construction in 2024
Half of payroll workers in construction earn more than $60,320 and the top 25% make at least $81,510, according to the latest May 2024 Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) and analysis by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). In comparison, the U.S. median annual pay is $49,500, while the…