National Association of Home Builders Economic Research Blog

Shorter Apartment Construction Time in 2025
Shorter Apartment Construction Time in 2025
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The average time needed to complete construction of a multifamily building after obtaining authorization edged down in 2025, according to the 2025 Survey of Construction (SOC) from the Census Bureau. ...
Beating Expectations: U.S. Economy Adds 162,000 Jobs in August
Beating Expectations: U.S. Economy Adds 162,000 Jobs in August
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The U.S. labor market rebounded in August, with nonfarm payrolls increasing by 162,000 and upward revisions adding 55,000 jobs to June and July. The unemployment rate held steady at 4.1%, ...
New vs. Existing Home Prices: What the National Median Misses
New vs. Existing Home Prices: What the National Median Misses
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In the second quarter of 2026, the national median price for a new single-family home was $410,700, $25,000 lower than the national median price of an existing home, which stood at $435,700. This marks the largest difference between the national median trends for existing and new home ...
Mortgage Rates Climb as Global Forces Push Yields Higher
Mortgage Rates Climb as Global Forces Push Yields Higher
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Mortgage rates increased in August as Treasury yields remained elevated amid persistent inflation concerns. According to Freddie Mac, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.67% in August, up 13 basis points ...
Share of New Homes with Patios Dips to a Six-Year Low
Share of New Homes with Patios Dips to a Six-Year Low
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The share of new homes with patios dipped below 61% for the first time since 2019, according to NAHB tabulation of data from the Survey of Construction (conducted by the ...
Private Residential Construction Spending Continues to Weaken
Private Residential Construction Spending Continues to Weaken
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Private residential construction spending fell further in July, marking its fourth consecutive monthly decline. According to the latest construction spending data from the U.S. Census Bureau, private residential construction spending ...
House Price Appreciation by State and Metro Area in the Second Quarter of 2026
House Price Appreciation by State and Metro Area in the Second Quarter of 2026
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U.S. house prices continued to rise in the second quarter of 2026, with most states and metropolitan areas recording annual gains. Elevated borrowing costs and affordability constraints remained important headwinds, ...
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The share of young adults living with parents increased in 2024, interrupting the post-pandemic trend of moving out of parental homes. Nearly a third (32.5%) of adults ages 18-34 lived with their parents according to the latest 2024 American Community Survey (ACS). This is up...

The value of a single-family home depends not only on its physical features but also on its location and neighborhood context. In this second part of our two-part series, we examine how geography and neighborhood quality further influence single-family detached home values across the United...

Market uncertainty exacerbated by the government shutdown along with economic uncertainty stemming from tariffs and rising construction costs kept builder confidence firmly in negative territory in November. Builder confidence in the market for newly built single-family homes rose one point to 38 in November, according...

Private residential construction spending inched up 0.8% in August, continuing steady growth since June 2025. This modest increase was primarily driven by more spending on multifamily construction and home improvements. However, total spending was 2% lower than a year ago, as the housing sector continues...

The value of a single-family home is shaped by many factors, but its physical features remain among one of the most influential. Using the latest 2023 American Housing Survey (AHS), this study focuses on which home features genuinely boost single-family detached home values and by...

Credit conditions on loans for residential Land Acquisition, Development & Construction (AD&C) were still tightening in the third quarter of 2025, according to NAHB’s quarterly survey on AD&C Financing. The net easing index derived from the survey posted a reading of -11.0 (the negative number...

Lending standards for most types of residential mortgages were essentially unchanged, according to the recent release of the Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey (SLOOS). For commercial real estate (CRE) loans, lending standards for construction & development were modestly tighter, while multifamily was essentially unchanged.  Demand for...

All types of mortgage activity rose on a year-over-year basis in October, supported by recent declines in interest rates. Notably, adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) applications more than doubled from a year ago, and refinancing activity continued to strengthen.  The Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Market Composite Index,...

In April 2020, total payroll employment in the United States fell by an unprecedented 20.5 million, following a loss of 1.4 million in March, as the COVID-19 pandemic brought the economy to a sudden halt. The unemployment rate surged by 10.4 percentage points to 14.8%...

Overall consumer credit continued to rise for the third quarter of 2025, but the pace of growth remains slow. Student loan balances continue to rise as well, slowly returning to pre-COVID growth. Furthermore, credit card and auto loan balances continue to grow but at historically...

International trade remains a source of volatility across the building materials sector, particularly in the softwood lumber market. Recent adjustments to antidumping and countervailing duty (AD/CVD) rates, combined with the imposition of Section 232 tariffs, have increased the trade-related cost of Canadian imports. As a...

As the nation’s housing stock continues to age and new homes remain out of reach for many buyers, remodeling is capturing a growing share of the residential construction market, both in terms of the number of firms and employment. With most U.S. households unable to...

Following the release of the 2024 single-family MAI last week, the National Association of Home Builders developed the Multifamily Market Association Index (MAI) to measure how closely multifamily building permits in metro areas follow national patterns. By comparing local and national trends, the MAI helps...

Confidence in the market for new multifamily housing increased year-over-year in the third quarter, according to the Multifamily Market Survey (MMS) released today by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). The MMS produces two separate indices. The Multifamily Production Index (MPI) had a reading...

Three-bedroom single-family homes reached their largest share of starts since 2011 and remained the most prevalent number of bedrooms among new homes. The share of starts for four-bedroom homes declined for the third consecutive year but remained well above the shares for two-bedroom or less...

Every year, NAHB and other industry experts and economists bring their latest insights to the NAHB International Builders’ Show® (IBS). For 2026, IBS offers an unparalleled lineup of IBS Education sessions that cover every sector of the housing industry: single-family, multifamily, remodeling, design trends, and...

In 2024, most new single-family homes included laundry connections on the first floor (70%), according to the Census Bureau’s Survey of Construction. The first floor is also where most customers prefer to have the laundry, as shown in Chapter 2 of What Home Buyers Really...

Average mortgage rates in October trended downward to the lowest rates in over a year. According to Freddie Mac, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.25% in October, 10 basis points (bps) lower than September. Meanwhile, the 15-year rate declined just 1 bp to 5.49%. Both...

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