Eye On Housing
Author Archives
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Builders Remain Careful
Builders’ confidence hesitated slightly in May as the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index dropped two points to 54. The April-May average remains at the same level as the first quarter average suggesting nothing has changed significantly for the first five months of 2015. Builders continue to express concern that consumers remain tentative on their judgement of present and future economic… Read More ›
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Eye on the Economy: Existing Home Sales Spring Forward
Spring brought good news for housing: a rise in pending and completed existing home sales. New home sales declined significantly in March, but the current pace of newly-built home purchases is up almost 20% from a year ago. Existing home sales soared 6.1% in March, with the share of sales for first-time buyers also increasing, according to estimates from the… Read More ›
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Slow but Steady Climb Back to Normal
Local economies continue to move toward economic and housing normality according to the NAHB/First American Leading Markets Index. The national index moved one percentage point to .91 in the first quarter of 2015 and 4 percentage points from the same quarter last year. The index measures proximity to normal through three elementary indicators of economic and housing stability: the level… Read More ›
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New Home Sales Take a Licking Keeps on Ticking
The annualized rate of new home sales dropped in March to 481,000 from an upwardly revised February rate of 543,000, which was a seven year high. While the March figure was 11.4% below February, it was also 19.4% above March 2014 when the housing market and the entire economy were suffering from an unusually cold winter. First quarter sales are… Read More ›
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Eye on the Economy: Modest Gains for Home Construction
After a disappointing set of housing data last month, recent reports suggest a return to trend for home building as the nation enters the spring home buying season. Home builders reversed a one-month decline in sentiment as the April NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) increased 4 points to 56 in April from a one-point downwardly revised 52 in March…. Read More ›
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Modest Increase in Housing Production
Housing starts and permits rose modestly in March after a very disappointing February. Total housing starts increased 2% to an annual rate of 926,000 from an upwardly revised 908,000 in February. Single-family starts improved slightly better at a 4.4% increase to 618,000 from a virtually unchanged 592,000 in February. Multifamily starts did drop again to 308,000, the lowest annualized monthly… Read More ›
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Builders’ Sentiment Bounces Back
Home builders reversed their one month decline in sentiment as the April NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index increased 4 points to 56 from a one-point downwardly revised 52 in March. The bounce back up to the January-February average suggests the March observation was an outlier. All three components revived to or above the early part of 2015. Current sales index… Read More ›
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Eye on the Economy: Weak Employment Gains in March
The March employment report disappointed most economists, casting some doubt on the strength of the labor market. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that payroll employment expanded by only 126,000 positions, with downward revisions totaling 69,000 for previously reported jobs gains in January and February. While the unemployment rate held steady at 5.5%, the downshift in the size of monthly… Read More ›
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Eye on the Economy: New and Existing Home Sales Increase in February
Builders signed contracts on more homes last month than any time since early 2008, according to figures released by the Census Bureau and HUD. February seasonally adjusted annual new home sales topped out at a 539,000 annual pace, up 7.8% from a healthy 500,000 rate in January. In percentage terms, sales increased the most in the Northeast (153% over the… Read More ›
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New Home Sales Surge
Builders signed contracts on more homes in February 2015 than any time since early 2008 according to the Census Bureau and HUD. February seasonally-adjusted annual new home sales topped out at 539,000, up 7.8% from a healthy 500,000 in January. Sales increased a whopping 153% in the Northeast region but that was a make-up from an overabundance of snow in… Read More ›