The past two months’ job gains indicate that the job market is cooling from its peak last year and is growing at a moderate pace. Total employment increased by 187,000 and the unemployment rate inched down to 3.5% in July. Wages grew at a 4.4%...
According to the Federal Reserve Board’s July 2023 Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey (SLOOS)—conducted for bank lending activity over the second quarter of 2023—banks reported that lending standards tightened for all residential real estate (RRE) and commercial real estate (CRE) loan categories. Demand for RRE...
NAHB analysis of the most recent Quarterly Sales by Price and Financing report reveals that the share of new home sales backed by FHA loans climbed from 12.1% (revised) to 14.0% in the second quarter of 2023. It is the largest share since Q1 2021...
The Census Bureau’s Housing Vacancy Survey (CPS/HVS) reported the U.S. homeownership rate at 65.9% in the second quarter of 2023, amid persistently tight housing supply. The homeownership rate remained statistically unchanged from the first quarter reading (66%). Compared to the peak of 69.2% in 2004,...
An earlier post revealed that 69% of buyers who were actively engaged in the process of finding a home in the second quarter of 2023 have spent 3+ months searching for a home without success. The inability to find an affordable home remains the most...
NAHB analysis of Census Construction Spending data shows that private residential construction spending rose 0.9% in June after an increase of 2.9% in May. Spending stood at a seasonally adjusted annual pace of $856.3 billion. However, total private residential construction spending is still 10.4%% lower...
The count of open, unfilled jobs for the overall economy continued to moved lower in June, falling to 9.6 million. While ongoing tight labor market conditions have raised the likelihood of a September Federal Reserve interest rate increase, the JOLTS survey is another data point...
Despite lower perceptions of affordability, the share of prospective home buyers who are actively engaged in the purchase process (i.e., have moved beyond the planning phase) remained essentially unchanged between the first and second quarters of 2023, at 56% and 55%, respectively. The lack of...
Housing’s share of the economy remained at 15.8% at the end of the second quarter of 2023. Overall GDP increased at a 2.4% annual rate, following a 2.0% increase in the first quarter of 2023 and 2.6% increase in the fourth quarter of 2022. Despite...
The most recent data release from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) showed that personal income increased 0.3% in June. The pace of personal income growth slowed after reaching a 0.7% monthly gain in January 2023. Gains in personal income are largely driven by increases...
After a reprieve in the first quarter of 2023, buyers’ outlook for housing affordability turned bleaker again in the second quarter. According to the latest Housing Trends Report, 76% of buyers are able to afford less than half the homes for-sale in their markets, up...
The U.S. economy grew at a solid pace in the second quarter of 2023, fueled by consumer and government spending. The second quarter data from the GDP report suggests that inflation is cooling. The GDP price index rose 2.2% for the second quarter, down from...
Increased levels of new home construction and sales are leading some buyers to expect the home search to get easier in the months ahead. According to the latest Housing Trends Report for the second quarter of 2023, 29% of prospective buyers are anticipating housing availability...
The Federal Reserve’s monetary policy committee increased the federal funds rate to a top target of 5.5% at the conclusion of its July meeting. The Fed will also continue to reduce its balance sheet holdings of Treasuries and mortgage-backed securities as part of quantitative tightening....
Rising mortgage rates and elevated construction costs put a damper on new home sales last month. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau estimated sales of newly built, single-family homes in June at a 697,000 seasonally adjusted annual pace,...
Higher interest rates have led millions of existing homeowners with mortgages under 4% to postpone plans to list their homes for sale, and for many prospective buyers, that supply vacuum has left newly built homes as the only game in town. That is the backdrop...
Mortgage rates’ slow –but steady– march upwards combined with the return of home price gains are doing what they are predicted to: slow housing demand. According to the latest Housing Trends Report, the share of adults with plans to purchase a home within a year...
Nonfarm payroll employment increased in 38 states and the District of Columbia in June compared to the previous month, while 12 states lost jobs. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, nationwide total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 209,000 in June, following a gain of...
