National Association of Home Builders Economic Research Blog

Slabs Overtake Basements in the East North Central Division
Slabs Overtake Basements in the East North Central Division
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Nearly three-quarters of new single-family homes started in 2025 were built on slab foundations, according to NAHB analysis of the U.S. Census Bureau’s Survey of Construction (SOC). The share of ...
Share of New Homes with Decks Inches Upward
Share of New Homes with Decks Inches Upward
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The share of new homes with decks inched upward, from an all-time low of 17.4% in 2024 to 17.8% in 2025, according to NAHB tabulation of data from the HUD/Census ...
State-Level Employment Situation: September 2026
State-Level Employment Situation: September 2026
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State-level employment data for September continued to show a mixed labor market, with job gains and losses split across the county. Although national nonfarm payroll employment increased modestly, year-over-year job ...
Nearly One in Three Construction Workers are Hispanic
Nearly One in Three Construction Workers are Hispanic
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Diversifying the construction labor force remains a key priority amid persistent skilled labor shortages. According to NAHB analysis of the 2024 American Community Survey, non-Hispanic White workers account for the ...
Market Share for Modular and Other Non-Site Built Housing in 2025
Market Share for Modular and Other Non-Site Built Housing in 2025
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The total market share of non-site-built single-family homes (modular and panelized) was just 3% of single-family homes in 2025, according to NAHB analysis of completion data from the U.S. Census ...
Single-Family Starts Down as Affordability Challenges Persist
Single-Family Starts Down as Affordability Challenges Persist
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Single-family housing starts declined in September as builders faced higher financing, building material costs, and ongoing labor shortages. Overall housing starts decreased 5.2% in September to a seasonally adjusted annual ...
Builder Sentiment Falls on Rising Rates
Builder Sentiment Falls on Rising Rates
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Rising mortgage rates, energy and material costs, and worsening labor and lot conditions have pushed builder sentiment to a 14-year low. Builder confidence in the market for newly built single-family ...
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The missing middle construction sector includes development of medium-density housing, including townhouses, duplexes and other small multifamily properties. While townhouse construction has trended higher in recent quarters, the multifamily segment of the missing middle (apartments in 2 to 4 unit properties) has disappointed. For 2021,...

According to NAHB analysis of quarterly Census data, the count of multifamily, for-rent housing starts remained elevated during the third quarter of 2022. At 141,000 units started, this was the largest quarter for rental multifamily construction since the second quarter of 1986. The market share...

An expected impact of the virus crisis was a need for more residential space, as people use homes for more purposes including work. During the housing boom after covid, this led to a rise for new single-family home size. However, as the housing market weakens...

Nonfarm payroll employment increased in 42 states in October compared to the previous month while eight states and the District of Columbia lost jobs. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, nationwide total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 261,000 in October, following a gain of...

NAHB’s analysis of Census Data from the Quarterly Starts and Completions by Purpose and Design survey indicates custom home building expanded during the third quarter of 2022 despite broader market weakness. There were 59,000 total custom building starts during the third quarter of the year....

As higher mortgage rates continue to weaken housing demand, the volume of existing home sales has declined for nine consecutive months as of October, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). This is the longest run of declines since 1999. The average 30-year fixed...

According to NAHB analysis of the most recent Census data of Starts and Completions by Purpose and Design, during the third quarter of 2022 single-family attached starts totaled 38,000, which is 12% higher than the third quarter of 2021. Over the last four quarters, townhouse...

Single-family built-for-rent construction leveled off during the third quarter of 2022 as the overall housing market slowed. This occurred after an exceptionally strong second quarter for rental housing production. According to NAHB’s analysis of data from the Census Bureau’s Quarterly Starts and Completions by Purpose...

Confidence in the market for new multifamily housing declined significantly in the third quarter of 2022, 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...

Elevated mortgage rates, high construction costs for concrete and other building materials, and weakening demand stemming from deteriorating affordability conditions continue to act as a drag on single-family housing production. Overall housing starts decreased 4.2% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.43 million units...

During the third quarter of 2022, credit continued to become less available and generally more costly on loans for Acquisition, Development & Construction (AD&C) according to NAHB’s Survey on AD&C Financing. To analyze credit availability, responses from the NAHB survey are used to construct a...

Elevated interest rates, stubbornly high building material costs and declining affordability conditions that are pushing more buyers to the sidelines continue to drag down builder sentiment. Builder confidence in the market for newly built single-family homes posted its 11th straight monthly decline in November, dropping...

The prices of building materials decreased 0.2% in October (not seasonally adjusted) following a 0.5% decline in September according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) report. The index has decreased four of five months for the first time since 2015. The PPI for goods...

Over the first nine months of 2022, the total number of single-family permits issued year-to-date (YTD) nationwide reached 800,424. On a year-over-year (YoY) basis, this is 7.4% below the September 2021 level of 864,184. Year-to-date ending in September, single-family permits declined in all four regions....

As a previous post has shown, the share of new homes with patios increased for the sixth year in a row in 2021, to a post-2004 high of 63.0 percent At the same time, the share with decks was trending in the opposite direction, declining...

Consumer prices in October saw the smallest year-over-year gain since January 2022, and while still elevated, inflation experienced the first month below an 8% annual growth rate since February 2022. However, the shelter index continued to rise at an accelerated pace and the energy index...

Rising mortgage rates, high inflation, ongoing building material supply chain disruptions, and elevated home prices contributed to housing affordability falling – yet again – to its lowest point since the Great Recession in the third quarter of 2022. According to the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity...

Per the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) survey through the week ending November 4th, total mortgage activity declined 0.1% from the previous week and the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) rate rose eight basis points to 7.14%. The FRM rate has risen 33 basis points over...

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