Inflation Steady in December
Inflation held steady in December, matching November’s reading, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) latest report. This December report was the first report to include a month-to-month figure since the government shutdown. However, the report should be read with caution as data distortions from the shutdown continue to affect key inflation measures, particularly housing. […]
Household Real Estate Asset Values Fall in the Third Quarter
The market value of household real estate assets fell to $48.0 trillion in the third quarter of 2025, according to the most recent release of U.S. Federal Reserve Z.1 Financial Accounts. The third quarter value is 0.7% lower than the second quarter but is 1.5% higher than a year ago. This measure of market value […]
Growth for Custom Home Building
NAHB’s analysis of Census Data from the Quarterly Starts and Completions by Purpose and Design survey indicates year-over year growth for custom home builders amid broader single-family home building weakness. The custom building market is less sensitive to the interest rate cycle than other forms of home building but is more sensitive to changes in household wealth […]
Townhouse Construction Share Gains Continue
Townhouse construction gained single-family construction market share during the third quarter of 2025. According to NAHB analysis of the most recent Census data of Starts and Completions by Purpose and Design, during the third quarter of 2025, single-family attached starts totaled 46,000. Over the last four quarters, townhouse construction starts totaled a strong 179,000 homes, which is […]
Job Growth Slowed as 2025 Ended
Job growth continued to slow at the end of the year, reinforcing signs of a cooling labor market. Nonfarm payrolls increased by 50,000 jobs in December, while the unemployment rate edged down slightly to 4.4%. With only 584,000 jobs added over the course of the year, 2025 marked the weakest annual job growth since 2003, […]
Residential Construction Softens Amid Ongoing Housing Market Headwinds
The latest residential housing market report, delayed by the federal government shutdown last fall, indicates that builders have faced significant headwinds in recent months. Elevated mortgage rates earlier in the year have restrained buyer demand and weighed on home building activity, alongside persistently high construction costs. Overall housing starts declined 4.6 percent in October to […]
Gains for Student Housing Construction in the Third Quarter of 2025
Private fixed investment for student dormitories was up 3.8% in the third quarter of 2025, reaching a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of $3.9 billion. This gain followed three consecutive quarterly declines, as elevated interest rates continued to weigh on student housing construction. Despite the quarterly gain, private fixed investment in dorms was 5.5% lower […]
Consumer Confidence Dropped to Lowest since Tariffs Introduced
Consumer confidence in December fell to the lowest level since April’s tariff implementation, reflective of growing concerns about reignited inflation and a weakening labor market affecting personal finances. The labor market differential, which measures the gap between consumers viewing job as plentiful and hard-to-get, continued to narrow and is now at its lowest level since […]
State-Level Employment Situation: November 2025
In November 2025, employment levels were largely unchanged across all states, with year-over-year growth holding near 2%. In contrast, construction employment showed greater variation, with some states experiencing declines of up to 7.5% while others posted gains approaching 10%. The recent federal government shutdown provides important context for this Bureau of Labor Statistics release, as […]
Construction Job Openings Increased in November
The count of open, unfilled positions in the construction industry increased in November, per the delayed Bureau of Labor Statistics Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS). The current level of open jobs is down measurably from two years ago due to declines in construction activity, particularly in housing. The number of open jobs for the […]
Mortgage Rates End 2025 at the Lowest Level of the Year
Long-term mortgage rates have been declining since mid- 2025 and ended the year at their lowest level since September 2024. According to Freddie Mac, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.19% in December, 5 basis points (bps) lower than November. Meanwhile, the 15-year rate declined 3 bps to 5.48%. Compared to a year ago, the 30-year […]
Housing Share of GDP: Third Quarter 2025
Housing’s share of the economy was 16.1% in the third quarter of 2025, according to the latest estimates of GDP produced by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. This share is down from 16.3% in the second quarter but has remained about 16% since the fourth quarter of 2019. The more cyclical home building and remodeling […]
Strong Economic Growth for Third Quarter
A belated GDP report shows that the U.S. economy expanded at a strong pace in the third quarter–July through September–before signs of cooling appeared in the labor market and consumer confidence weakened. According to the “advance” estimate released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), real gross domestic product (GDP) expanded at an annual rate […]
Top Posts – The Power of Women in the Workforce
Over the past 125 years, women have played a crucial and multifaceted role in the labor force. Increasing women’s participation in the workforce is not only essential for individual and family well-being, but also contributes significantly to overall labor force participation rates and economic growth by adding more workers and enhancing overall productivity1. Historically, […]
Top Posts – Lower Mortgage Rates, Better Affordability
As housing affordability remains a critical challenge across the country, mortgage rates continue to play a central role in shaping homebuying power. Mortgage rates stayed elevated throughout 2023 and early 2024. Recent data, however, shows a modest decline in mortgage rates. Even slight declines can have a significant impact on housing affordability, pricing more households […]
Top Posts – Residential Remodelers Outnumber Single-family Builders in the U.S.
The number of residential remodelers in the U.S. has reached a record high of 128,187 establishments, 65% higher than the number of residential builders (single-family and multifamily), which stands at 77,455. These official government counts were released by the U.S. Census Bureau as part of its 2022 Economic Census, which tallies American businesses every five […]
Top Posts – U.S. Population Grows at Highest Rate Since 2001
According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s latest estimates, the U.S. resident population grew by 3,304,757 to a total population of 340,110,988. The population grew at a rate of 0.98%, the highest rate since 0.99% in 2001. This also marked the third straight increase in the growth rate of the U.S. population. The vintage population estimates […]
Top Posts – States with Highest and Fastest Rising Construction Wages, 2025
Wage growth in construction continued to decelerate in April on a national basis, but the differences across regional markets remain stark. Nationally, average hourly earnings (AHE) in construction increased 3.6% year-over-year and crossed the $39.3 mark when averaged across all payroll employees (non-seasonally adjusted, NSA). Meanwhile, average earnings in construction in Alaska and Massachusetts exceeded […]