Eye On Housing
Author Archives
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Share of New Homes with Decks Declines in 2018
Of the roughly 876,000 single-family homes started in 2018, 22.6 percent included decks, according to NAHB tabulation of data from the Survey of Construction (SOC, conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau and partially funded by HUD). This is down over a full percentage point from he 23.8 percent recorded a year earlier. From 2005 to 2008, the share of new… Read More ›
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Reversing Trend, Interest Rates on AD&C Loans Decline in 3rd Quarter
In the third-quarter of 2019, builders and developers reported declining interest rates on all types of loans covered in NAHB’s survey on acquisition, development and construction (AD&C) financing. In the third quarter, the average interest rate declined from 6.59 to 6.39 percent on loans for land acquisition, from 6.49 to 6.39 percent on loans for land development, from 6.21 to… Read More ›
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Share of New Homes with Porches Up to 94% in East South Central
Of the single-family homes started in 2018, 64.9 percent came with porches, according to NAHB tabulation of data from the Survey of Construction (SOC, conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau with partial funding from the Department of Housing and Urban Development). Historically, the SOC shows the share of single-family homes with porches increasing regularly to a high of 65.7 percent in 2011… Read More ›
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Share of New Homes with Fireplaces
Only 41 percent of single-family homes started in 2018 included fireplaces, according to NAHB tabulation of recently released data from the Survey of Construction (produced by the U.S. Census Bureau with partial funding from HUD). This percentage is the lowest on record since NAHB began tabulating the data in a consistent fashion in 2001. Since 2015, the share of single-family… Read More ›
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New Home Price Data Underscore Affordability Problems
New data released by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, combined with recent NAHB survey data, show a mismatch between the actual prices of new homes and the prices buyers expect to pay—providing further evidence for the growing problem of housing affordability. At the end of August, the Census Bureau released 2018 data from… Read More ›
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While Other Rates Decline, Rates on AD&C Loans Trend Up
In the second quarter of 2019, interest rates on loans for land acquisition, development, and single-family construction (AD&C) continued to drift upward, according to results from NAHB’s quarterly AD&C Financing Survey. As the survey showed, relationships among the various subcategories of AD&C loans remained about the same, with the highest average interest rate—6.59 percent—recorded on loans for land acquisition loans,… Read More ›
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Homebuyer Preferences: Millennials vs. Other Generations
A recent study by NAHB reveals that millennials have a much stronger desire for certain bathroom features relative to older generations. The report compiled survey data between 2007 and 2018 and found that the share of home buyers who want whirlpool tubs declines as the older generations age but stays relatively constant for millennials. As of 2018, 70% of millennials… Read More ›
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Top 10 Features Millennials Want—and Don’t Want
At least four out of five millennial buyers prefer laundry rooms, hardwood front exteriors, patios and garage storage. Conversely, they give a thumbs down to elevators, wine cellars and laminate countertops. These were among the findings from a new study by the NAHB Economics team that focused on millennial home buying preferences. The 2018 survey asked recent and prospective buyers… Read More ›
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Labor Shortages Still Hurting Affordability
Labor and subcontractor shortages remained widespread in July of 2019 and are continuing to impact the industry in a number of ways—including putting additional upward pressure on new home prices— according to results from special questions on the survey for the NAHB/Well Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI). In July, the HMI survey asked builders specifically about shortages in 16 different occupations. … Read More ›
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The Effect of Affordable Housing on the Surrounding Neighborhood
Although produced by NAHB’s Economists, Eye on Housing is intended for a fairly broad readership with an interest in housing, but not necessarily in the academic research published by technical journals. Nevertheless, many EoH readers will want to know about a relatively recent technical paper published in Housing Policy Debate. The paper is called The What, Where, and When of… Read More ›