by ShoesOptional | May 26, 2016 | Uncategorized
Sales of newly built, single-family homes rose 16.6% in April from an upwardly revised March reading to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 619,000 units, according to newly released data by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau. This is the highest sales pace since January 2008.
“Builders remain optimistic about the housing market, and this month’s jump in new home sales is a positive sign that growing demand will keep the housing sector on an upward trajectory through the spring buying season,” said National Association of Home Builders Chairman Ed Brady.
“Rising home sales combined with tight inventory will translate into increased housing production as we move onward in 2016, especially as job creation continues and mortgage rates remain low,” said National Association of Home Builders Chief Economist Robert Dietz.
The inventory of new homes for sale was 243,000 in April, which is a 4.7-month supply at the current sales pace. The median sales price of new houses sold in April was $321,100.
Regionally, new home sales rose by 52.8% in the Northeast, 18.8% in the West and 15.8% in the South. Sales fell by 4.8% in the Midwest.
See National Association of Home Builders’ historical new home sales data and read Dietz’s Eye on Housing blog post for further details.
by ShoesOptional | Mar 22, 2016 | Uncategorized
Nationwide housing starts rose 5.2% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.178 million units in February, according to newly released data from Housing and Urban Development and the Commerce Department. Single-family production increased 7.2% to 822,000 units, its highest level since November 2007, while multifamily starts edged up 0.8% to 356,000 units.
“This month’s report is consistent with positive builder sentiment and other economic indicators showing that the housing market continues to recover at a gradual pace,” said National Association of Home Builders Chairman Ed Brady.
“February’s single-family gains indicate that this sector is strengthening in line with our forecast,” said National Association of Home Builders Chief Economist David Crowe. “As the U.S. economy firms, job creation continues and mortgage interest rates remain low, we should see further growth in housing production moving forward.”
Combined single- and multifamily starts rose in three of the four regions in February, with the West, Midwest and South posting respective gains of 26.1%, 19.9% and 7.1%. The Northeast registered a 51.3% loss.
A decline in the volatile multifamily sector pushed overall permit issuance down 3.1% in February. Multifamily permits fell 8.4% to a rate of 436,000 while single-family permits ticked up 0.4% to 731,000.
Regionally, permits increased in the Northeast by 40.4 %. The Midwest, West and South registered respective permit losses of 11.4%, 7.2% and 4.4%.
by ShoesOptional | Feb 17, 2016 | Uncategorized
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has announced it will be holding a free webinar on March 1 from 2-3 p.m. ET to “address specific questions relating to the Know Before You Owe mortgage disclosure rule and construction lending.” The webinar will be hosted by the Federal Reserve.
The mortgage lending rules instituted last fall eliminated the Good Faith Estimate, the Truth in Lending and HUD-1 Settlement Statements and replaced them with the CFPB’s new integrated disclosure forms, the “Loan Estimate” and the “Closing Disclosure.”
The biggest change is that the Closing Disclosure must be provided to the consumer a full three days prior to closing, and if there are certain changes during that 72-hour period, the closing could be delayed. The three-day period is designed to give consumers more time to review their loan documents.
View CFPB resources and previous webinars to help you comply with the lending rules.
Learn more about the new rules and download resources to help you comply.
by ShoesOptional | Jan 6, 2016 | Uncategorized
Sales of newly built, single-family homes rose 4.3% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 490,000 units in November, according to newly released data from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau.
“It is encouraging to see new-home sales continue to tick upward,” said NAHB Chairman Tom Woods. “Builders are also increasing their inventory even as they face difficulties accessing lots and labor.”
Regionally, sales rose 20.5% in the West and 4.5% in the South. Sales fell 28.6% in the Northeast and 8.6% in the Midwest.
“Limited gains in new-home sales can be attributed to a weak existing sales report,” said NAHB Chief Economist David Crowe. “People who already own a house comprise most of the new residential construction market, and they often must sell their existing home before making another purchase.”
The inventory of new homes for sale was 232,000 units in November. This is a 5.7-month supply at the current sales pace. This increase in new home sales shows the continuation of growth in the industry.
by ShoesOptional | Nov 10, 2015 | Uncategorized
This data is fresh from NAHB’s
Eye on Housing blog, and relates well to our discussion at last months Sales and Marketing Council education event.
The rental apartment market continued to be strong during the second quarter of 2015, as multifamily production levels remain elevated.
According to NAHB analysis of the most recent data from the Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development Survey of Market Absorption of Apartments (SOMA), completions of privately financed, unsubsidized, unfurnished rental apartments in buildings with five or more units totaled 210,200 residences for the four quarter period ending with the first quarter of 2015, a 40% increase from the prior four quarters.
Non-seasonally adjusted three-month absorption rates (units rented after construction of the property is complete) for first quarter completions (rented during the second quarter of 2015) were effectively unchanged from a year prior at 61%. Absorption rates for rental apartments rose coming out of the recession but have established a more stable range since 2011, a period during which completions have increased substantially.
In contrast, condo and co-op completions remain at historically low levels, with 1,300 for-sale multifamily homes (in 5+ unit properties) completed during the first quarter of 2015. The non-seasonally adjusted 3-month absorption rate for for-sale multifamily for condos completed during the first quarter and sold during the second quarter of 2015 held strong at 74%.
The SOMA data also reveal that for properties with five or more units, approximately 5,300 Low-Income Housing Tax Credit or other federally subsidized units were completed during the first quarter of 2015. Over the last four quarters, 27,300 LIHTC and other affordable housing units were completed (approximately 10% of total apartment completions).
