Eye On Housing
Author Archives
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Softwood Lumber Prices Surge a Record 29% in September — Building Materials Up 4.4% in 2020
Prices paid for goods used in residential construction climbed 1.8% in September (not seasonally adjusted) according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) report released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The index for inputs to residential construction, goods less food and energy (i.e. the “core”)—a less volatile price measure—increased 2.2% over the month. The core index for building materials has… Read More ›
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Largest Four-Month Lumber Price Increase in 70 Years Outweighs Other Price Declines in August
Prices paid for goods used in residential construction continued their upward trend in August, increasing 0.9% (not seasonally adjusted) according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) report released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. It is the fourth consecutive monthly increase since the index declined three months straight and brings the index back to its pre-pandemic level. Prices of… Read More ›
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Softwood Lumber Costs Up Nearly 30% Over Three Months, Push Building Materials Prices Higher in July
Prices paid for goods used in residential construction continued their upward trend in July, increasing 1.8% (not seasonally adjusted) according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) report released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. It is the third consecutive monthly increase since the index declined three months straight by a total 5.4%. The index has decreased 1.3% year-to-date (YTD), a larger… Read More ›
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Share of FHA-Backed New Home Sales Reaches Eight-Year High
NAHB analysis of the most recent Quarterly Sales by Price and Financing published by the U.S. Census Bureau reveals that FHA-backed sales made up 20.4% of new home sales in the first quarter of 2020, the largest market share since 2012. In addition, the share of cash sales (4.2%) tied a decade low. FHA-backed sales made up 20.4% of new home sales… Read More ›
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Rising Softwood Lumber Costs Lead Building Materials Prices Higher in June
Prices paid for goods used in residential construction increased 1.9% in June (not seasonally adjusted) according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) report released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. It is the second consecutive monthly increase since the index declined three months straight by a total 5.4%. The index has decreased 3.0% year-to-date (YTD), five times the magnitude… Read More ›
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Building Materials Prices Move Higher in May
Prices paid for goods used in residential construction increased 0.6% in May (not seasonally adjusted) according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) report released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. May marks only the fourth monthly increase in the past 12 months in the price index for residential construction inputs. The index has declined 4.8% year-to-date (YTD), nearly four times the… Read More ›
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Building Materials Prices Post Record Monthly Decline in April
Prices paid for goods used in residential construction decreased 4.1% in April (not seasonally adjusted)—the largest monthly decline on record—according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) report released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The year-to-date decline (-5.4%) in residential construction inputs prices is more than three times larger than the previous record (-1.3% in 2009). Building materials prices have fallen… Read More ›
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Conventional Financing of New Home Purchases Declines as VA-Backed Sales Gain Market Share
NAHB analysis of the most recent Quarterly Sales by Price and Financing published by the U.S. Census Bureau reveals that VA-backed sales made up 9.1% of new home sales in the first quarter of 2020, the largest market share since early 2016. In addition, cash sales (4.3%) made up their smallest share since Q3 2009 (3.8%). Mortgages backed by the… Read More ›
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First Year-To-Date Price Decline in March for Building Materials Since the Great Recession
Prices paid for goods used in residential construction decreased 0.8% in March (not seasonally adjusted) according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) report released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The year-to-date decline in residential construction inputs prices is the first January-to-March decrease since the Great Recession. Building materials prices have fallen 1.8% since March 2019 by -0.15% per… Read More ›
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Building Materials Prices and Supply Chain Routes
Prices paid for goods used in residential construction decreased 0.5% in February (not seasonally adjusted) according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Building materials prices are just 0.6% higher than they were 12 months ago and have been remarkably stable since then, with an average monthly increase of 0.05%. In fact, the… Read More ›