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…
Housing markets in the Midwest have experienced weakness in recent quarters. For example, single-family permits posted a 3.6% decline in year-to-date data when comparing December 2018 level with December 2017 in the Midwest. Single-family permitting for the first four months of 2019 are down 11.3% in the Midwest when compared to the opening months of…
In July 2018, the United States Trade Representative (USTR) announced its intention to levy tariffs on a series of imports from China. USTR rolled out proposed tariffs in three waves, with the third list (List 3) covering approximately $200 billion worth of Chinese imports. The List 3 goods comprises 5745 items, approximately 450 of which…
In the average new home, 28.0 percent of the finished floor space is allocated to bedrooms and 11.2 percent to the kitchen area, according to a recent NAHB study. The questions covered 13 specific types of areas or rooms, plus a catch-all “other” category for any types not on the list. The averages are illustrated…
Property taxes vary widely across states both in terms of annual taxes paid as well as effective tax rates. In 2017, the difference between average real estate taxes paid by New Jersey and Alabama home owners was nearly $8,000. New Jersey continued its perennial distinction as having the highest average real estate tax bill per…
Vacancy rates are one of the key statistics NAHB Economics tracks to judge the health and direction of the housing market. The currently low homeowner and rental vacancy rates are typically interpreted as a sign of tight housing markets, with lower vacancy rates signaling a greater housing shortage. NAHB’s analysis of the latest 2017 ACS…
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), signed into law in late 2017, created a new section of the tax code—199A. Section 199A provides a 20% deduction for “qualified business income” generated by pass-thru entities such as LLCs, partnerships, and S-corporations. The law went a long way to help small business owners compete, but left…
