Articles
Builder confidence declines but remains solid
"Builder confidence remains solid, although sales expectations for the next six months dropped four points on economic uncertainty stemming from the coronavirus," said NAHB chairman Dean Mon, a home builder and developer from Shrewsbury, N.J. "Interest rates remain low, and a lack of inventory creates market opportunities for single-family builders." Read More
Single-Family starts up, COVID-19 challenges ahead
"As indicated by some of the softening in builder confidence in March, housing construction faces significant headwinds as we enter the spring season," said NAHB chief economist Robert Dietz. "With a rising number of economic sectors on a partial or full pause due to coronavirus mitigation, housing demand and the ability to continue full construction of homes is at significant risk." Read More
Multifamily Builder and Developer Confidence Remains Unchanged in Fourth Quarter
"Demand for apartments has been strong for the past several months, especially for apartments that are more affordably priced," said Barry Kahn, president of Hetting-Kahn Holdings in Houston and chairman of NAHB's Multifamily Council. "We are seeing an increased need for affordable housing in most markets around the country." Read More
Multifamily confidence unchanged in Q4
Confidence in the market for new multifamily housing remained unchanged in the fourth quarter of 2019, 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 (MPI) remained even at 49, while the Multifamily Vacancy Index (MVI) also remained even with a reading of 40. Read More
BEA News: Gross Domestic Product, Fourth Quarter and Year 2019 (Second Estimate)
Real gross domestic product (GDP) increased 2.1 percent in the fourth quarter of 2019, according to the "second" estimate released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. The growth rate is the same as in the "advance" estimate released in January. In the third quarter, real GDP also increased 2.1 percent. Read More
New home sales strong at start of 2020
Sales of newly built, single-family homes rose 7.9 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 764,000 units in January, coming off an upward revision in December, according to newly released data by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau. The monthly number is 18.6 percent higher than the January 2019 rate and the highest monthly sales pace since July 2007. Read More
Housing production shows solid start to 2020
"The housing recovery continues, as single-family housing starts have surpassed 1 million for the second consecutive month and multifamily production has been running above 500,000 for the same period," said Dean Mon, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a home builder and developer from Shrewsbury, N.J. "Meanwhile, builder confidence remains solid as demand continues to pick up." Read More