MetroIntelligence Economic Update by P. DUFFY
January builder confidence rises for second consecutive month to 44
Builder confidence in the market for newly built single-family homes climbed seven points to 44 in January. The HMI index charting current sales conditions increased seven points to 48, the component measuring sales expectations in the next six months jumped 12 points to 57 and the component gauging traffic of prospective buyers rose five points to 29.
Share of builders cutting prices falls to 31 percent in January, lowest rate since August
In January, 31% of builders reported cutting home prices, down from 36% during the previous two months and the lowest rate since last August. The average price reduction in January remained at 6%, unchanged from the previous month. Meanwhile, 62% of builders provided sales incentives of all forms in January. This share has remained stable between 60% and 62% since October.
Housing starts fall 4.3 percent in December but up 7.6 percent year-on-year
Privately‐owned housing starts in December were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,460,000, down 4.3 percent from November but up 7.6 percent year-on-year. An estimated 1,413,100 housing units were started in 2023. This is down 9.0 percent from 2022.
https://www.census.gov/construction/nrc/current/index.html
Building permits rise 1.9 percent from November, up 6.1 percent year-on-year
Privately‐owned housing units authorized by building permits in December were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,495,000, up 1.9 percent from November and 6.1 percent year-on-year. An estimated 1,469,800 housing units were authorized by building permits in 2023. This is 11.7 percent below the 2022 figure of 1,665,100.
