Trends
Builder Confidence Edges Up as Strong Demand Offsets Supply-Side Challenges
Strong buyer demand pushed builder confidence up in April even as builders continued to grapple with rising lumber prices and supply chain issues and consumers faced higher home prices due to a lack inventory. The latest NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) released today shows that builder confidence in the market for newly built single-family homes rose one point to 83 in April.
Minority Households Face Housing Affordability Challenges
New NAHB analysis on housing affordability based on race and ethnicity shows a wide disparity regarding the number of households that can afford a new median priced home.
Buyers Split on Exterior Design Preferences
When presented with four choices for exterior design, respondents for NAHB’s latest What Home Buyers Really Want edition did not choose a clear winner.
Households View Housing as a Good Investment Versus Stocks
A recent study by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York found that most households view housing as a good investment in comparison to the stock market.
Buyers are Split on Multigenerational Homes
When it comes to the desire for a home designed to house the buyer as well as a younger generation and an older generation, home buyers are split down the middle.
Residential Construction Employment Surpasses February 2020 Pre-Pandemic Level
Residential construction employment increased by 37,000 in March and has now surpassed the level in February 2020, before the COVID-19 pandemic led to massive job losses in construction and other sectors of the economy
Median Age of Housing Stock by State Varies by More Than 35 Years
The median age of owner-occupied homes in the United States is 39 years, but this figure varies dramatically when broken down state-by-state. On the farthest ends of the spectrum, New York has the oldest owner-occupied homes with a median age of 60 years while Nevada leads the newer owner-occupied housing stock at only 23 years.
Recent Rise in Interest Rates Has Priced Out More Than 1.3 Million Households
The recent rise in mortgage interest rates during the past two months has priced more than 1.3 million households out of the market for a median priced home, according to analysis by NAHB.
How Has COVID Impacted Home Buyer Preferences?
NAHB’s latest edition of What Home Buyers Really Want examines home buyer preferences across the industry, including the impact that COVID-19 may have on the types of features, size and location of homes that buyers are seeking.
Housing Affordability Explained in One Pyramid
NAHB economists calculated how many households have enough income to afford a home at various price thresholds, according to conventional underwriting standards. The housing affordability pyramid reveals that 56.5 million households out of a total of 122.9 million are unable to afford a $250,000 home.
