Eye On Housing
After a surge in the pace of new home sales in July and August, the monthly growth rate of newly built single-family home slowed during the Fall. While the level of sales remains elevated and at post-Great Recession highs, sales have exceeded construction starts by a historic margin at the end of the summer. This necessitated an increase in starts… Read More ›
Nonfarm payroll employment increased in 45 states in October compared to the previous month. The largest increase came from California, which added 145,500 jobs during this time. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, nationwide total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 638,000 over the month of October, following an increase of 672,000 jobs in September. Month-over-month (MoM), total nonfarm employment… Read More ›
According to NAHB analysis of quarterly Census data, the market share of rental units of total multifamily construction starts remained at 96% during the third quarter of 2020. In contrast, the historical low share of 47% was set during the third quarter of 2005, during the condo building boom. An average share of 80% was registered during the 1980-2002 period…. Read More ›
Of the roughly 879,000 single-family homes started in 2019, 59.6 percent included patios, according to NAHB tabulation of data from the Survey of Construction (SOC, conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau and partially funded by HUD). Once again, this set a new record high (NAHB began tracking the series in 2005), and once again the record was set by a… Read More ›
NAHB’s analysis of Census Data from the Quarterly Starts and Completions by Purpose and Design survey indicates custom home building lagged the overall single-family construction market in the third quarter of 2020. There were 52,000 total custom building starts during the third quarter, a 7% decline compared to the third quarter of 2019. Over the last four quarters, custom housing starts totaled… Read More ›
According to NAHB analysis of the most recent Census data of Starts and Completions by Purpose and Design, townhouse construction declined during the third quarter. As housing demand has shifted to more suburban and exurban areas and housing affordability headwinds persist, medium-density construction has lagged. During the third quarter of 2020, single-family attached starts totaled 31,000, which was 3% lower than the… Read More ›
Single-family starts experienced continued gains in October, according to data from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Census Bureau. Single-family construction is up 8.6% year-to-date, with notable gains in 2020 for the Midwest and other lower-density markets. The pace of single-family starts in October was the highest production rate since the spring of 2007. Single-family building… Read More ›
In another sign that housing continues to lead the economy forward, builder confidence in the market for newly-built single-family homes increased five points to 90 in November, shattering the previous all-time high of 85 recorded in October. Builder confidence levels have hit successive all-time highs over the past three months. Historically low mortgage rates, favorable demographics and an ongoing suburban… Read More ›
While lenders continued to report tightening in the third quarter, builders and developers responding to NAHB’s survey on financing for Acquisition, Development and Construction (AD&C) reported a near-neutral change in credit availability. The net tightening index derived from the NAHB survey was -3.3 in the third quarter of 2020, compared to 12.0 in the second quarter. The index is constructed… Read More ›
The construction labor market experienced a reduced level of turnover in the September BLS JOLTS (Job Openings and Labor Turnover) data. The construction sector hiring rate slowed somewhat in September, coming in at 5.3%, after 5.5% gains in August and July. The peak rate of hiring in 2020 occurred in May (9.7%). Construction sector layoffs have been low since May… Read More ›