Eye On Housing
Author Archives
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Lot Size is at a New Record Low
The median lot size of a new single-family detached home sold in 2016 stands at 8,562 square feet, or just under one-fifth of an acre. This is a new record low and a small decline since 2015, when the median lot size fell under 8,600 square feet for the first time since Census Bureau’s Survey of Construction (SOC) started tracking… Read More ›
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How New Home Buyers Financed Their Homes in 2016
NAHB analysis of the 2016 Census Bureau Survey of Construction (SOC) data shows that reliance on non-conventional forms of financing varied across the United States, with its share exceeding 37% in the South Atlantic division but accounting for less than 20% of new single-family home starts in the East South Central and East North Central divisions. Nationwide, the share of… Read More ›
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Custom and Spec Home Market Shares in 2016
NAHB’s analysis of the most recent Census Bureau’s Survey of Construction (SOC) shows that custom home building registered declining market shares across most US regions in 2016. The sharpest drop in the custom home share of new single-family starts took place in the East South Central division, from 35% to 27%. The two exceptions are the Mountain and Pacific divisions… Read More ›
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What Do Home Buyers Buy after Moving
In a prior recent post we discussed NAHB research showing how during the first year after closing on a home sale, home buyers tend to spend considerably more money on furnishings, appliances and remodeling compared to non-moving owners. Buyers of new homes spend most, outspending non-movers by a factor of 2.6. Buyers of existing homes spend twice as much as… Read More ›
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How a Home Purchase Boosts Consumer Spending
Using the Consumer Expenditure Survey (CES) data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), NAHB Economics research shows that a home purchase triggers additional spending on appliances, furnishings, and remodeling. NAHB’s most recent estimates are based on the 2012-2014 data and show that during the first two years after closing on the house, a typical buyer of a newly-built single-family… Read More ›
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NAHB Releases New Home Building Employment Estimates by State and Congressional District
The new NAHB study presents the most recent and comprehensive estimates of home building employment, including self-employed workers, by state and congressional district. NAHB Economics estimates that out of 9.6 million people working in construction in 2015, close to 3.8 million people worked in residential construction, accounting for 2.5% of the US employed civilian labor force. These numbers reflect steady… Read More ›
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Sale and Contract Prices per Square Foot in 2015
Looking at single-family homes started in 2015, the median prices, excluding improved lot values, range from $168 per square foot for contractor-built homes in the Pacific division to $78 per square foot for speculatively built homes in the East South Central division. At $168 per square foot, new contractor-built single-family homes in Pacific are the most expensive to build exceeding… Read More ›
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The Geography of Homes Built on Private Wells and with Individual Septic Systems
NAHB Economics analysis of the Survey of Construction (SOC) data shows that less than 9% of new single-family homes started in 2015 are served by individual wells and close to 16% have private septic systems. These shares, however, vary widely across the nine Census divisions with the corresponding shares reaching 39% and 47% in New England – the highest occurrence… Read More ›
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How New Home Buyers Financed Their Homes in 2015
NAHB analysis of the Census Bureau Survey of Construction (SOC) data shows that non-conventional forms of financing new single-family home purchases remained elevated in 2015, accounting for more than a third of the market. Looking at new single-family homes started in 2015, the South Atlantic division was most dependent on non-conventional financing, with its share exceeding 40% of the market…. Read More ›
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Custom and Spec Home Market Shares in 2015
Custom home building registered declining market shares across all regions of the Unites States in 2015, except the New England and East South Central division where the custom home share of new single-family starts remained stable and relatively high. NAHB’s analysis of the most recent Census Bureau’s Survey of Construction (SOC) shows that New England registered the highest custom home… Read More ›