Eye On Housing
Recent developments in the first quarter of 2022 per NAHB’s Home Building Geography Index (HBGI), indicate single-family home building slowing in suburbs, with most other regional geographies following suit. Following the aftermath of COVID-19, home buyer preferences for the suburbs have eased. Supply-chain challenges and unfavorable economic conditions have reduced the pace of single-family residential construction across all regional submarkets…. Read More ›
NAHB’s latest survey on consumer preferences – What Home Buyers Really Want – asked recent and prospective buyers about the desirability of an exercise room in the home. Results show that 47% of buyers rate an exercise room essential or desirable. The arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic in the spring of 2020 likely accelerated the long-term, rising popularity of exercise… Read More ›
Few events over the last century have had as profound an impact on the ways we live than the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Premier among them is the heightened relevance of ‘home.’ The health crisis thrust the home into a new level of prominence, expanding its purpose beyond just a functional dwelling to many non-traditional roles such as office, gym, or… Read More ›
The two most wanted features in a home are a laundry room and exterior lighting, according to NAHB’s latest study on consumer preferences – What Home Buyers Really Want (2021 Edition). The study is based on a national survey of more than 3,200 recent and prospective home buyers (people who bought homes in the previous three years or plan to… Read More ›
According to the latest What Home Buyers Really Want*, 60% of home buyers would prefer a newly-built home over an existing home. In other words, all else equal, their first preference would be to purchase a new home. Looking at historical data shows a clear shift in preferences towards new construction in 2020. The share of buyers who would have… Read More ›
A recent NAHB study* found that COVID-19 has impacted the housing preferences of 25% of home buyers. More specifically, the survey asked about location preferences both prior to COVID-19 and now: did buyers’ preferred location change as a result of the pandemic? Results show that a segment of home buyers have in fact shifted their preference towards the outlying suburbs… Read More ›
The Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) latest Weekly Application shows a mild slowdown in purchase and refinancing activity from the previous week, on a seasonally adjusted basis. The Market Composite Index decreased by 8.7% and its constituent Purchasing and Refinancing indices decreased by 3.0% and 11.7%, respectively. The MBA’s 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rate remained unchanged from the previous week at the… Read More ›
Lock down orders implemented across the US to fight the spread of the coronavirus have given rise to more people working from home and engaging in other activities indoors that they would normally do in public spaces. With the major shift in where people spend their time, it is important to examine the data currently available on home buyers’ preferences… Read More ›
After rising for six consecutive years (2010 to 2015), the average home size in the US has fallen steadily for the past four years (2016 to 2019). In fact, estimates indicate the average home built in 2019 was the smallest since 2011. This trend is evidence that builders are working to meet the demand for smaller homes; that they are… Read More ›