The Census Bureau’s quarterly summary of State & Local Tax Revenue shows a 1.7% increase in property taxes paid, rising from a revised estimate of $754.1 to $766.7 billion in the seasonally adjusted four quarters ending in the first quarter of 2024. The rate of...
Existing home sales fell for the third straight month in May due to lingering high mortgage rates and record-high prices, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). Low resale inventory and strong demand continued to drive up existing home prices, marking the eleventh consecutive...
Single-family and multifamily housing starts fell in May as high interest rates for construction and development loans and elevated mortgage rates held back both housing supply and demand. Overall housing starts fell 5.5% in May to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.28 million units,...
Mortgage rates that continue to hover in the 7% range along with elevated construction financing costs continue to put a damper on builder sentiment. Builder confidence in the market for newly built single-family homes was 43 in June, down two points from May, according to...
The market value of household real estate assets rose from $44.90 trillion to $45.84 trillion in the first quarter of 2024 according to the most recent release of U.S. Federal Reserve Z.1 Financial Accounts. Over the year, household real estate assets were 7.75% higher. After...
Over the first four months of 2024, the total number of single-family permits issued year-to-date (YTD) nationwide reached 336,124. On a year-over-year (YoY) basis, this is an increase of 25.3% over the April 2023 level of 268,205. Year-to-date ending in April, single-family permits were up...
Diversifying the construction labor force is a key strategic goal given the ongoing skilled labor shortage. The latest labor force statistics from the 2022 American Community Survey[1] show that Non-Hispanic White people account for the majority of workers in the construction industry (57.5%). However, Hispanics...
Up to this point in 2024, the median builder has sold 22% of its homes to buyers who used all cash to pay for them (i.e., did not take out a mortgage), according to a recent NAHB survey. The survey took the form of a...
Inputs to residential construction, goods less food and energy, fell 0.09% over the month according to the most recent producer price index (PPI) report published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The index for inputs to residential construction, goods less food and energy, represents...
The Federal Reserve’s monetary policy committee held constant the federal funds rate at a top target of 5.5% at the conclusion of its June meeting. In its statement, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) noted: Recent indicators suggest that economic activity has continued to expand...
Both overall and core inflation continued to ease in May as decline in gasoline price offset the increase the shelter cost. This is a dovish signal for future monetary policy. Despite a slowdown in the year-over-year increase, shelter costs continue to put upward pressure on...
Total outstanding US debt stood at $5.05 trillion for the first quarter of 2024, increasing at an annualized rate of 1.86% (SA), according to the Federal Reserve’s G.19 Consumer Credit Report. From the first quarter of 2023 to the first quarter of 2024, the total...
In 2022, around 1.29 million women worked in construction in the United States, accounting for 10.97% of the industry, according to the 2022 American Community Survey. Within the construction industry, women are more likely to be found in such occupations as office and administrative support,...
Despite high interest rates, job growth accelerated in May, but the unemployment rate increased to 4.0%. Overall, the labor market remains strong, but there are signs of slowing, which signals monetary policy easing in the months ahead. Additionally, wage growth accelerated for the first time...
According to Freddie Mac, the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage increased by 7 basis points (bps) in May 2024, reaching 7.06%, up from 6.99% the previous month. This represents a 64 bps increase from the previous year, when it stood at 6.34%. The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage...
Despite higher mortgage rates, limited resale inventory and strong growth in demand continued to put upward pressure on house prices. House price appreciation was recorded in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. According to the quarterly all-transactions House Price Index (HPI) released by...
The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume by Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) weekly survey, has been hovering around 200 since October 2022 as higher mortgage rates and low resale inventory continue to hamper potential buyers. On a week-over-week change, total mortgage,...
Due to tightened monetary policy, the count of open jobs for the economy and construction is declining, per the Bureau of Labor Statistics Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS). This is consistent with a somewhat cooler economy, which is a positive sign for future...
