Eye On Housing
In the June labor market data, job openings for the overall economy increased to 10.1 million open positions. What had been a challenge in certain sectors, like construction, is now a broad labor access issue as businesses seek workers as the economy reopens. The count of open construction jobs increased in June to 339,000 unfilled positions, according to data from… Read More ›
Of the roughly 990,000 single-family and 389,000 multifamily homes started in 2020, 46,000 (28,000 single-family and 18,000 multifamily) were built in age-restricted communities, according to NAHB tabulation of data from the Survey of Construction (SOC, conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau and partially funded by HUD). A residential community can be legally age-restricted, provided it conforms the one of the… Read More ›
Thanks to a surge in residential investment during 2020, housing’s share of GDP remains elevated compared to recent years. Last year’s market conditions involved a renewed focus on the importance of home, an evolving geography of housing demand, and a lack of for-sale inventory. Housing will continue to expand in 2021, although as the rest of the economy recovers, the… Read More ›
Today’s Federal Open Market Committee announcement did not provide an explicit reference to an expected tapering of purchases of Treasury ($80 billion a month) and mortgage-backed ($40 billion a month) securities. In addition, as part of its ongoing accommodative policy stance, the Fed held its benchmark target rate near zero percent. In Chairman Powell’s press conference remarks, he stated, “The… Read More ›
As supply-side challenges continue, June recorded a decline of 6.6% for sales of newly-constructed single family homes, according to estimates from the Census Bureau and HUD. The June seasonally adjusted annual rate (676K) was the lowest since April 2020, due to builders slowing sales as a consequence of higher material costs and declining availability of labor, material and lots. Higher… Read More ›
Housing production was steady in June, although permit issuance weakened as higher construction costs and other supply limitations are deferring and delaying some construction projects. Overall housing starts increased 6.3% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.64 million units, according to data from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau. However, single-family permits… Read More ›
Nonfarm payroll employment increased in 44 states and the District of Columbia in June compared to the previous month while six states lost jobs. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, nationwide total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 850,000 in June, following an upwardly revised increase of 583,000 jobs in May. On a month-over-month basis, employment data was strong in… Read More ›
Strong buyer demand helped to offset ongoing supply-side challenges of labor shortages, regulatory costs, and rising prices of materials as builder confidence in the market for newly built single-family homes inched down one point to 80 in July, according the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI). Among the supply-side challenges, the price of OSB (oriented… Read More ›
According to NAHB’s latest estimates, changes in prices for softwood lumber products that occurred between April 17, 2020 and July 08, 2021 are enough to add $29,833 to the price of an average new single-family home, and $9,990 to the market value of an average new multifamily home. The increase in multifamily value, in turn, translates to households paying $92… Read More ›
The NAHB/Royal Building Products Remodeling Market Index (RMI) increased for the second quarter, posting a reading of 87, up 14 points from the second quarter of 2020. The increase in the index is a sign of improving remodelers’ confidence in their markets, for projects of all sizes. The RMI is an average of two major component indices: the Current Conditions… Read More ›