Over the first eleven months of 2022, the total number of single-family permits issued year-to-date (YTD) nationwide reached 921,626. On a year-over-year (YoY) basis, this is 10.5% below the November 2021 level of 1,029,208. Year-to-date ending in November, single-family permits declined in all four regions. The South posted a decline of 8.4%, while the West region reported the steepest decline… Read More ›

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A modest drop in interest rates helped to end a string of 12 straight monthly declines in builder confidence levels, although sentiment remains in bearish territory as builders continue to grapple with elevated construction costs, building material supply chain disruptions and challenging affordability conditions. Builder confidence in the market for newly built single-family homes in January rose four points to… Read More ›

In May of last year, Eye on Housing reported on historically widespread shortages of building materials.  Since then, most of the shortages have eased; the major exceptions being shortages of HVAC equipment and certain categories of ceramic materials (ceramic tiles, clay bricks and cement-based building materials), which have gotten slightly worse. NAHB has been tracking shortages of building materials and… Read More ›

According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s latest estimates, the U.S. resident population grew by 1,256,003 to a total population of 333,287,557. After a historically low growth rate of 0.16% between 2020 and 2021, the U.S. population grew at a rate of 0.38% between 2021 and 2022. The increase in the population growth rate reversed a 6-year trend of declining population… Read More ›

Consumer prices in December saw the largest month-over-month decrease since April 2020. While still elevated, inflation experienced the third month below an 8% annual growth rate since February 2022. Moreover, this was the sixth consecutive month of a deceleration. However, the shelter index (housing inflation) continued to rise at an accelerated pace and was the largest contributor to the total… Read More ›

Per the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) survey through the week ending January 6th, total mortgage activity increased 1.2% from the previous week and the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) rate fell sixteen basis points to 6.42%. The FRM rate has remained near 6.4% over the past month. The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, rose by… Read More ›

The balance of consumer credit outstanding grew 7.1% in November 2022 (seasonal adjusted annual rate) after climbing 7.4% (SAAR) in October according to the Federal Reserve’s latest G.19 Consumer Credit report.  Revolving debt—which consists primarily of credit card debt—increased at a 16.9% rate, more than four times the growth of nonrevolving debt (excluding real estate) which grew 3.9% (SAAR). Credit card… Read More ›

Mortgage rates have increased rapidly in 2022, as the Federal Reserve continues to fight high inflation. The U.S. weekly 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rose from a slightly more than 3% in early 2022 to more than 7% in late October and leveled off at a rate of 6.42% as of the end of 2022. Mortgage payments have increased from $1,925 on… Read More ›

Average hourly earnings for residential building workers* rose at a slower pace in November. After reaching the highest rate (8%) of 2021 in October, the pace of wage growth has retreated and remained below 4% for the past five consecutive months. The recent slowdown in wage growth will ease inflation pressures. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) report,… Read More ›