Confidence in the market for new multifamily housing declined year-over-year in the second quarter of 2024, according to results from 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...
The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume by the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) weekly survey, saw a slight month-over-month decline of 0.8% on a seasonally adjusted (SA) basis; compared to July 2023, the index increased by 0.5%. The Purchase Index declined...
The share of new single-family homes built in the 1,600-3,000 square-foot range closely matches the share of buyers who want homes of that size, according to recent surveys from NAHB and the U.S. Census Bureau. The surveys show that 21% of buyers want homes with...
Almost all new single-family homes that started construction in 2023 used either an air/ground source heat pump or a forced air system (without heat pump) for the primary heating system (98% in 2023), according to the Census’s Survey of Construction. While this survey data does...
The total share of workers teleworking or working from home for pay has increased from 2023, according to the latest Telework or Work at Home for Pay Survey from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In June 2023, 19% of the labor force teleworked on a...
Residential building workers’ wage growth accelerated to 9.0% in June. This marks the fastest year-over-year (YOY) growth rate since December 2018. After a 0.3% increase in June 2023, the YOY growth rate for residential building worker wages have been trending upward over the past year....
In July, job growth decelerated significantly, and the unemployment rate increased to a nearly three-year high of 4.3%. The July data indicates that the labor market is slowing, which signals monetary policy easing in the months ahead. Additionally, wage growth slowed for the second month...
Mortgage rates continued to decrease in July, landing at an average rate of 6.85%. According to Freddie Mac, the average monthly rate fell by 7 basis points (bps) from June’s rate of 6.92%. This current rate is nearly identical to the rate from one year...
Private residential construction spending was down 0.3% in June, after a dip of 0.7% in the prior month, according to the Census Construction Spending data. Nevertheless, it remained 7.3% higher compared to a year ago. The monthly decline in total private construction spending for June...
Since the passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) in 2017, tax returns that itemize Schedule A deductions, such as the mortgage interest deduction (MID) , have fallen significantly with only 9.6% of all returns using an itemized deduction in tax year 2021....
The Federal Reserve’s monetary policy committee once again held constant the federal funds rate at a top target of 5.5% at the conclusion of its July meeting. In its statement, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) noted: “Recent indicators suggest that economic activity has continued...
The U.S. homeownership rate was 65.6% in the second quarter of 2024, unchanged from the first quarter of 2024, according to the Census’s Housing Vacancies and Homeownership Survey (HVS). However, this marks the lowest rate in the last two years. The homeownership rate is below...
Nationwide, the share of non-conventional financing for new home sales accounted for 32.4% of the market per NAHB analysis of the 2023 Census Bureau Survey of Construction (SOC) data. This is a significant 4.3 percentage point increase from the 2022 share of 28.1%. As in...
Home prices experienced a third year-over-year deceleration in May, according to the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index. On a year-over-year basis, the non-seasonally adjusted (NSA) index posted a 5.94% annual gain in May, down from a 6.39% increase in April. Since June...
Due to slowing home construction and elevated interest rates, the count of open construction sector jobs shifted lower in June, per the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS). However, this shift lower is consistent with a somewhat cooler labor market,...
Private fixed investment in student dormitories declined 5% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of $3.7 billion in the second quarter of 2024, after a 2.8% decrease in the prior quarter. Private fixed investment in dorms was 0.4% lower than a year ago, as...
Personal income inched up 0.2% in June, down from a 0.4% increase in the prior month, according to the most recent data release from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA). Gains in personal income are largely driven by increases in wages and salaries. As spending...
The number of homes started in 2023 exceeding 5,000 square feet, dropped to 26,000, a decrease from 29,000 in 2022, according to the annual data from the Census Bureau’s Survey of Construction (SOC). In 2006, the number of new 5,000+ square foot homes reached a...
