Existing Home Sales Jump in January

By Housing
Following a cycle low in December, existing home sales rose to a 5-month high to start the year, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). Low resale inventory and strong demand continued to drive up existing home prices, marking the seventh consecutive month of year-over-year median sales price increase. It is also the first time in 14 months that… Read More ›

Multifamily Missing Middle Construction Unchanged

By Housing
The missing middle construction sector includes development of medium-density housing, such as townhouses, duplexes and other small multifamily properties. The multifamily segment of the missing middle (apartments in 2- to 4-unit properties) has disappointed since the Great Recession. For the fourth quarter of 2023, there were just 4,000 2- to 4-unit housing unit construction starts. This is flat from a year prior…. Read More ›

Multifamily Developer Confidence in Negative Territory in Fourth Quarter

By Housing
Confidence in the market for new multifamily housing was in negative territory for the fourth quarter, 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) had a reading of 41 – below the break-even point of 50 – while… Read More ›

Small Decline for Multifamily Built-for-Rent Share

By Housing
According to NAHB analysis of quarterly Census data, the count of multifamily, for-rent housing starts declined somewhat during the fourth quarter of 2023. For the quarter, 102,000 multifamily residences started construction. Of this total, 98,000 were built-for-rent. The market share of rental units of multifamily construction starts fell back to a still elevated 96% for the fourth quarter as the… Read More ›

Strong Quarter for Single-Family Built-for-Rent Construction

By Housing
Single-family built-for-rent construction accelerated at the end of 2023, as builders sought to add additional rental housing in a market facing elevated mortgage interest rates. According to NAHB’s analysis of data from the Census Bureau’s Quarterly Starts and Completions by Purpose and Design, there were approximately 22,000 single-family built-for-rent (SFBFR) starts during the fourth quarter of 2023. This is more than… Read More ›

Residential Building Material Price Increase to Start 2024

By Housing
The latest Producer Price Index, reported by U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, indicated that inputs to residential construction, goods less foods and energy (residential building materials, not seasonally adjusted) increased 1.28% between December 2023 and January 2024. This was the largest monthly change for the index since March of 2022, when it increased by 2.07%. The year-over-year change of the… Read More ›