Eye On Housing
Author Archives
-
Prices Paid for Building Materials Increase in July
Prices paid for goods used in residential construction increased by 0.7% in July (not seasonally adjusted) according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Building materials prices have declined an average of 0.1% per month over the last 12 months, compared to an average monthly increase of 0.8% during the same period 2017-2018…. Read More ›
-
FHA-Backed New Home Sales Increase 60% Year-over-Year
NAHB analysis of the most recent Quarterly Sales by Price and Financing published by the U.S. Census Bureau reveals that mortgages backed by the FHA made up 17.9% (32,000) of total sales (179,000), 7.3 percentage points higher than Q2 2018 (20,000). The FHA share is the highest it has been since the first quarter of 2013. Conventional loans accounted for… Read More ›
-
Property Taxes by Congressional District
Earlier this year, NAHB released 2017 property taxes by state as a blog post and as a longer special study. However, in light of changes made to the tax code by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), further refining the statistics by congressional district is instructive to both members of Congress as well as their constituents. Property Tax Payments,… Read More ›
-
Building Materials Price Declines Led by Lumber and Plywood
Prices paid for goods used in residential construction decreased by 1.1% in June (not seasonally adjusted) according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The decline broke a four-month trend of increases and was only the fifth month over the past two years in which prices fell. Over the past 12 months, building materials prices… Read More ›
-
Building Materials Prices Flat as Gypsum, Lumber Slow Overall Growth
Prices paid for goods used in residential construction did not change in May (not seasonally adjusted) according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. As a result, building materials prices have grown much more slowly in 2019 (+3.1%) than they did over the same period in 2018, during which they increased 4.7%. Consistent… Read More ›
-
Prices of Building Materials Edge Higher in April
Prices paid for goods used in residential construction increased 0.8% in April (not seasonally adjusted) according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Prices have risen more quickly thus far in 2019 (+3.2%) than they did during the same period in 2018 (+2.8%) and are at their highest level since last October (see… Read More ›
-
How Tariffs and Tariff Announcements are Affecting Building Materials Imports from China
In July 2018, the United States Trade Representative (USTR) announced its intention to levy tariffs on a series of imports from China. USTR rolled out proposed tariffs in three waves, with the third list (List 3) covering approximately $200 billion worth of Chinese imports. The List 3 goods comprises 5745 items, approximately 450 of which are commonly used in the… Read More ›
-
FHA-Backed Mortgages Finance Increasing Share of New Home Sales
NAHB analysis of the most recent Quarterly Sales by Price and Financing published by the U.S. Census Bureau reveals that conventional loans accounted for 71.3% of new home sales in the first quarter of 2019, a 3.3-percentage point decrease from Q4 2018 (revised). The decline comes despite lower mortgage rates, continuing a post-2012 pattern in which higher average rates have… Read More ›
-
Prices of Construction Inputs Rise Despite Declines in Lumber, Gypsum
Prices paid for goods used in residential construction increased 1.5% in March (not seasonally adjusted) according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Prices have risen more quickly thus far in 2019 than they did during the same period in 2018 and are at their highest level since last October (see below). The… Read More ›
-
Gypsum Prices Down 10% Since 2018 Peak
The downward trend in prices paid for gypsum products continued in February, as prices declined 5.1% (seasonally adjusted) according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Prices paid for gypsum products have fallen 8.6% and 9.8% since the start of 2019 and August 2018, respectively. The trend is notable as prices have fallen… Read More ›