Single-family starts permits declined in March, as higher interest rates weighed on housing affordability and produced a fourth straight decline for the NAHB/Wells Fargo HMI. Additionally, the cost and availability of materials, lumber, labor and lots remain key supply-side headwinds. Nonetheless, the resale market lacks inventory supporting ongoing demand for new construction. Single-family permits decreased…
Rapidly rising interest rates combined with ongoing home price increases and higher construction costs continue to take a toll on builder confidence and housing affordability. Builder confidence in the market for newly built single-family homes moved two points lower to 77 in April, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market…
Over the first two month of 2022, the total number of single-family permits issued year-to-date (YTD) nationwide reached 170,716. On a year-over-year (YoY) basis, this is a 3.5% increase over the February 2021 level of 164,901. Year-to-date ending in February, single-family permits declined in two out of the four regions. The South posted an increase…
The NAHB/Westlake Royal Remodeling Market Index (RMI) for the first quarter of 2022 posted a reading of 86, unchanged from the first quarter of 2021. The RMI and all of its components and subcomponents were 80 or higher (on a scale of 0 to 100) indicating broad-based positive remodeler sentiment. The RMI is based on…
According to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) report released today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the prices of goods used in residential construction ex-energy (not seasonally adjusted) climbed 1.4% in March, following an upwardly revised increase of 2.2% in February and 4.1% in January. This adds up to an 8% jump in building…
Driven by higher food, gasoline and housing cost, consumer prices continued to accelerate in March. This marked the sixth straight month for inflation above a 6% rate and was the fastest annual pace since December 1981. Though gas prices have fallen slightly from their March highs, the pace of inflation will likely stay high in…
NAHB analysis of the Current Population Survey’s (CPS) 2020 Annual Social and Economic Supplement (ASEC) estimates the national homeownership rate at 66.4%. This analysis provides a further breakdown of this rate through the lens of married couple homeownership, which we estimate at 79% for 2020. In addition to the overall married couple homeownership rate, two…
