Eye On Housing
NAHB Economics regularly receives requests to evaluate the effects of pending new regulations on housing affordability in local markets where regulatory actions are expected to raise home prices. The NAHB Priced Out Model provides straightforward answers on the issue. The model estimates how many households can qualify for a new home mortgage before and after a house price increase. The… Read More ›
Tag Archive for ‘economics’
2011 JOLTS Data – First Year Since 2006 for Construction Job Growth
The February release (December 2011 data) of the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) confirms a prediction we made earlier in the year. 2011 was the first year for the construction sector for which total hires exceeded total job separations since 2006. For the overall economy, total hiring for December 2011 was… Read More ›
Metro Area New Home Prices
The U.S. Census Bureau regularly tracks new home prices for the United States, Census Regions and Divisions. However, there is no systematic measurement of new home prices by states or metropolitan areas. To fill the void, NAHB Economics periodically estimates median new home prices for metropolitan areas. The most recent estimates show that median new home prices range from less… Read More ›
The Employment Situation for January – Moving In The Right Direction
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released the Employment Situation report for January today. Annual revisions complicate the release, but the news is basically good. Payroll employment rose by 243 thousand in January, and the November and December figures were revised upward by a total of 60 thousand. The unemployment rate declined to 8.3 from 8.5 percent. For the January… Read More ›
Case-Shiller House Prices – A Little Perspective, Please
The S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Index was released with data through November, and the press release announced declines in the 10-city and 20-city composites, as well as most of the cities covered by the composites, on a monthly and annual basis. The problem is that these comparisons lack the perspective required to accurately describe current conditions, or to help inform… Read More ›
An Aging Housing Stock
The American owner-occupied housing stock is growing older. And this fact may signal future increased demand for both remodeling and new home construction over the long-term. Data from the Department of Housing and Urban Development American Housing Survey (AHS) reveal that the median age of an owner-occupied home in the United States was 34 years old as of the 2009 survey…. Read More ›
Fourth Quarter GDP Growth – Advance Estimate: Encouraging
The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) released the advance estimate of real GDP growth for the fourth quarter of 2011. Real GDP grew at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 2.8 percent, up from 1.8 percent in the third quarter. The main contributors were private inventory investment and personal consumption expenditures (PCE). Declines in government spending, at the federal, state… Read More ›
Federal Open Market Committee January Meeting Statement – Enjoying the View
The communication following the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) two day meeting January 24-25 comes in three parts. The standard statement is joined by the release of tables and charts summarizing the economic projections and the target federal funds rate projections of the meeting participants, as well as an additional statement explaining the Fed’s principles regarding longer-term goals and policy… Read More ›
FHFA Shows Modest Home Price Improvement in November
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) released monthly home price indexes for the US and the 9 Census divisions for November. Home prices for the US overall increased by 1.0 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis, while 8 of the 9 Census divisions had increases, ranging from 0.2 to 2.0 percent. Home prices in the Middle Atlantic division declined by… Read More ›
Strong Increase in Existing Home Sales
Existing home sales continued to grow on a month-to-month basis in December, rising for a third consecutive month. The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported sales of existing homes comprised of completed transactions of single-family, townhouses, condominiums and coops rose 5.0 percent in December to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.61 million. This is an increase from the downwardly… Read More ›