Eye On Housing

• Remodeling Confidence Increases Despite Rising Costs
  The Remodeling Market Index (RMI) rose one point to 58 in the second quarter of 2018, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). A RMI reading above 50 indicates that more remodelers report market activity is higher than report it is lower compared to the prior quarter. The RMI has been above 50 […]
• Residential Construction Down in June
  Following two consecutive monthly increases, single-family starts fell by 9.1 percent over the month of June to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 858,000, according to a joint release by the Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. However, over the quarter, starts of single-family houses was about flat, rising by 1.2 […]
• Builder Confidence Stays at Healthy Level in July
  Builder confidence in the market for newly-built single-family homes remained unchanged at a solid 68 reading in July on the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI). Builders are optimistic about housing market conditions, basing their confidence on continued solid demand for single-family homes. However, persistent increases in construction costs make it […]
• Western States Lead Single-family Residential Permits Growth, Northeast Lags
  Over the first five months of 2018, the total number of single-family permits issued year-to-date (YTD) nationwide reached 363,327. On a year-over-year basis, this is an 8.0% increase over the May 2017 level of 336,410. The results from the SOC are similar, year-to-date single-family permits over the first five months of 2018 was, 363,700 which […]
• Apartment Construction Times Lengthened in 2017
  The average length of time to complete construction of a multifamily building, after obtaining authorization, was 15.7 months according to the 2017 Survey of Construction (SOC) from the Census Bureau. The authorization-to-completion time has been on an upward trend since 2013, increasing by approximately one month each year. The average time to build multifamily homes […]
• Slightly Longer Hours Worked Makes Up For Faster Inflation
  The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that, on a seasonally adjusted basis, headline consumer prices, grew over the month of June, but at a slower pace than in May. The monthly slowdown partly reflected a decline in energy prices, electricity and utility (piped) gas specifically, although food prices accelerated over the month. Excluding energy and […]
• Lumber Prices Increase While Gypsum Falls in June
  The prices of building materials generally increased in June, according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) release by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. For the second consecutive month, softwood lumber (+4.0%) led the way, followed by oriented strand board (+2.2%, not seasonally adjusted). Similarly, the indexes for ready-mix concrete (-0.3%) and gypsum products (-0.6%) […]
• Count of Unfilled Construction Jobs Remains Near Cycle High
  The count of unfilled jobs in the construction sector was flat in May, remaining near post-Great Recession high levels. According to the BLS Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) and NAHB analysis, the number of open construction sector jobs came in at 243,000. The post-recession high count of open, unfilled construction jobs was 255,000 […]
• Time Needed to Build a Single-Family Home in 2017
  The 2017 Survey of Construction (SOC) from the Census Bureau shows that the average completion time of a single-family house is around 7.5 months, which usually includes almost a month from authorization to start and another 6.5 months to finish the construction. The average completion time in 2017 was the same as it was in […]
• Housing Share of GDP: First Quarter 2018
  With the release of the final estimate of first quarter 2018 GDP growth (2% growth rate), housing’s share of gross domestic product (GDP) declined slightly to 15.3%. The home building and remodeling component – residential fixed investment – held steady at 3.5%. Housing-related activities contribute to GDP in two basic ways. The first is through residential fixed investment […]