There is a mismatch between the prices of homes being built, and the prices home buyers expect to pay, according to recent surveys from NAHB and the U.S. Census Bureau. While 38% of buyers expect to pay less than $250,000 for their next home (and...
The rising trend of two or more stories homes reversed in 2023, according to data obtained from the US Census Bureau’s Survey of Construction (SOC) and tabulated by NAHB. The share of homes started with two or more stories decreased for the first time in...
Due to tightened monetary policy, the count of open construction sector jobs shifted lower in the early Spring but is now stabilizing, per the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS). This shift lower is consistent with a somewhat cooler labor...
Private residential construction spending was down 0.2% in May after surging 0.9% in the prior month, according to the construction spending data by the U.S. Census Bureau. Nevertheless, spending remained 6.5% higher compared to a year ago. The monthly decline in total private construction spending...
Real gross domestic product (GDP) increased in 39 states and the District of Columbia in the first quarter of 2024 compared to the last quarter of 2023 according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA). Ten states reported an economic contraction during this time,...
According to Freddie Mac, the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage decreased by 14 basis points (bps) from 7.06% in the previous month to 6.92% in June 2024. This decline comes after increases from 6.64% in January to a peak above 7.2% in May. Nonetheless, the current...
The budget deficit in 2024 is expected to total $1.9 trillion, according to the Congressional Budget Office’s most recent June estimates. This marks a $408 billion increase from the $1.5 trillion estimate published in February. This increase is the result of increased spending of $363...
Total (new and existing) home inventory is an important measure for gauging and forecasting home prices and home construction impacts. The intuition is clear: more inventory yields weaker or declining home price growth and home building activity. Lean inventory levels lead to price growth and...
New single-family starts have trended higher since 2012, reaching a post-pandemic peak of 1,133,145 units in 2021. During 2022 and 2023, elevated housing prices and persistently high mortgage rates have dampened housing market activity. According to NAHB analysis of the 2023 Survey of Construction (SOC),...
Consumer confidence weakened in June but remained within the range of the past two years, with optimism about current labor market conditions offsetting concerns about future economic outlook. However, higher interest rates and lingering inflation continue to discourage consumption. The Consumer Confidence Index, reported by...
Mortgage rates that averaged 7.06% in May per Freddie Mac, the highest monthly average since last November, put a damper on new home sales last month. Sales of newly built, single-family homes in May fell 11.3% to a 619,000 seasonally adjusted annual rate from a...
The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index (HPI) increased at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.18% for April. This was following a revised rate of 3.69% in March. On a year-over-year basis, the non-seasonally adjusted (NSA) index posted a 6.29% annual gain...
Nonfarm payroll employment increased in 41 states and the District of Columbia in May compared to the previous month, while nine states saw a decrease. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, nationwide total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 272,000 in May, following a gain...
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...
