The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) has conducted its Housing Market Index (HMI),
which it produces in conjunction with Wells Fargo, for the past 30 years. The HMI is derived from new-home builder survey responses which in July reported an utterly static outlook.
“For the past six months, builder confidence has remained in a relatively narrow positive range that is consistent with the ongoing gradual housing recovery that is underway,” said NAHB Chairman Ed Brady. “However, we are still hearing reports from our members of scattered softness in some markets, due largely to regulatory constraints and shortages of lots and labor.”
Builders are asked to rate their perceptions of both current single-family home sales and sales expectations for the next six months as good, fair, or poor. They are also asked to rate traffic of prospective buyers as high to very high, average, or low to very low. Scores for each component are then used to calculate a seasonally adjusted index where any number over 50 indicates that more builders view conditions as good rather than poor. The highest level for the HMI in over 10 years was 65 last October.
Now is the time to remain positive! Please feel free to contact me at (619) 857-7191 – we will discuss your best loan options for the current housing market.
