Single-family construction surged in November as lower mortgage rates helped to assuage affordability concerns and unleash pent-up demand for housing. Overall housing starts increased 14.8% in November to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.56 million units, according to a report from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau. The November reading of 1.56… Read More ›
Falling mortgage rates helped end a four-month decline in builder confidence, and recent economic data signal improving housing conditions heading into 2024. Builder confidence in the market for newly built single-family homes rose three points to 37 in December, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI). With mortgage rates down roughly 50 basis… Read More ›
After years of being unable to ratchet up the number of new workers coming from outside the U.S. to help with persistent labor shortages, the construction industry reversed this trend and managed to attract over 90,000 new immigrant workers, levels unseen since the housing boom of 2005-2006. Native-born workers remain reluctant and continue joining the industry at a slower rate,… Read More ›
Over the first ten months of 2023, the total number of single-family permits issued year-to-date (YTD) nationwide reached 773,526. On a year-over-year (YoY) basis, this is 10.7% below the October 2022 level of 865,815. Year-to-date ending in October, single-family permits declined in all four regions. The range of permit decline spanned 8.6% in the Northeast to 16.1% in the West…. Read More ›
The Census Bureau’s latest Survey of Construction (SOC) shows small changes in the share of number of bedrooms for new single-family homes in 2022 compared with the previous year. The current estimates indicate the share of new single-family homes with two bedrooms or less is 11.0%, three bedrooms, the largest share, had a share of 42.8%, four bedrooms make up… Read More ›
The Federal Reserve’s monetary policy committee held the federal funds rate constant at a top target rate of 5.5% at the conclusion of its December meeting. The Fed will continue to reduce its balance sheet holdings of Treasuries and mortgage-backed securities as part of quantitative tightening and balance sheet normalization. Marking a third consecutive meeting holding the federal funds rate… Read More ›
