In November, job growth slowed, and the unemployment rate rose to 4.6%, its highest level in four years. At the same time, job gains for the previous two months (August and September) were revised downward. The November’s jobs report indicates a cooling labor market as...
Builder confidence inched higher to end the year but still remains well into negative territory as builders continue to grapple with rising construction costs, tariff and economic uncertainty, and many potential buyers remaining on the sidelines due to affordability concerns. Builder confidence in the market...
The latest homeownership rate rose to 65.3% in the third quarter of 2025, according to the Census’s Housing Vacancy Survey (HVS). Despite this quarterly increase, the trend continues to reflect significant affordability challenges. With mortgage interest rates remaining elevated, and housing supply still tight, housing...
The central bank’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) cut rates a third and final time in 2025, reducing the target range for the federal funds rate by 25 basis points to a 3.5% to 3.75% range. This reduction will help reduce financing costs of builder...
The count of open, unfilled positions in the construction industry was relatively unchanged in October, per the 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...
Mortgage activity continued to climb in November, posting the largest year-over-year increase in more than five years. Every major category increased on a year-over-year basis as mortgage rates continue to trend lower, led by strong increases in refinancing and adjustable-rate mortgage activity. The Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Market Composite Index, a measure of total mortgage application volume, fell 1.6% from October on a seasonally adjusted basis but was 60% higher than...
In 2024, 65.7% of all new single-family homes started were built within a community or homeowner’s association. This share increased from the 64.8% recorded in 2023, according to data tabulated from the Census Bureau’s Survey of Construction (SOC). This marks the second highest share since...
The average mortgage rate in November continued to trend lower to its lowest level in over a year. According to Freddie Mac, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.24% in November, 2 basis points (bps) lower than in October. Meanwhile, the 15-year rate increased 3 bps...
Single-family homes started in 2024 typically had two full bathrooms, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of Construction. Homes with three full bathrooms continued to have the second largest share of starts at around 23%. Meanwhile, both homes with four full bathrooms or...
House prices continued to rise in the third quarter of 2025, though the pace of growth slowed as elevated mortgage rates, affordability challenges, and persistent economic uncertainty weighed on consumer demand. After several years of rapid growth, Hawaii and 38 metro areas saw house price...
Single-family construction lending picked up in the third quarter, amidst the overall cooling lending environment. Loan balances for 1-4 family construction grew to $91.2 billion in the third quarter, registering the first annual increase in over two years. However, across all acquisition, development and construction...
In 2024, 6.9% of new single-family detached homes were teardowns (structures torn down and rebuilt in older neighborhoods), and another 20.1% were built on infill lots in older neighborhoods, according to the latest Builder Practices Survey (BPS) conducted by Home Innovation Research Labs. The BPS places...
Nationally, across the 87 million owner-occupied homes in the U.S., the average amount of annual real estate taxes paid in 2024 was $4,271, according to NAHB analysis of the 2024 American Community Survey. Homeowners in New Jersey continued to pay the highest real estate taxes,...
The share of new homes with decks edged down from 17.6% in 2023 to a new all-time low of 17.4% in 2024, according to NAHB tabulation of data from the HUD/Census Bureau Survey of Construction (SOC). Over the longer term, the share of new homes...
Aggregate residential building material prices rose at their fastest pace since January 2023 in the latest Producer Price Index release from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Input energy prices increased for the first time in over a year, while service price growth remained lower than...
The housing affordability crisis continues to disproportionately affect renters, with more than half of renter households experiencing high-cost burdens — i.e., paying 30% or more of their income on rent and utilities. At the same time, current home owners, buoyed by significant home equity gains...
The long-delayed September jobs report revealed that the U.S. economy added 119,000 jobs while the unemployment rate climbed to its highest level in nearly four years. Combined with downward revisions to previous months, this month’s data indicates a slowing of the U.S. labor market, though...
Existing home sales rose to an eight-month high in October as buyers took advantage of lower mortgage rates, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). Resale inventory improved from a year ago but remained below pre-pandemic levels. Relatively tight supply continued to push home...
