There was a disappointing report on the housing market out yesterday: The National Association of Home Builders reported that its confidence index slipped in February, signaling that builders were growing less optimistic. But the report shouldn’t be taken as entirely negative. The NAHB said that demand wasn’t an issue; the problems like in a lack of available lots for building and rising costs for materials.
So as soon as the supply issues are resolved, the housing market should continue moving forward. In fact, home builders said in the same survey that they are optimistic that home sales will be stronger in March. Overall, even that lower reading in February was 64 percent higher than the same sentiment reading from a year ago.
The Commerce Department is scheduled to issue its report on February new home construction later this morning, which should give us a better handle on where the housing market stands. According to a survey of economists conducted by Dow Jones, the number of new homes is expected to have risen by 3 percent.
No comments:
Post a Comment