Prospective buyers in the third quarter of 2022 are more likely to have higher levels of income and education than earlier in the year. This helps explain why affordability expectations have improved. In the third quarter of 2022, 69% of buyers could only afford a…
NAHB analysis of the most recent Quarterly Sales by Price and Financing published by the U.S. Census Bureau reveals that new home sales financed through FHA numbered 11,000 and accounted for 7.5% of the total in Q3 2022–the smallest share since the fourth quarter of 2007. The…
The most recent data release from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) showed that personal income increased 0.4% in September, the eighth consecutive monthly increase of this year. Gains in personal income are largely driven by increases in compensation of employees and personal income on…
For the second straight quarter, more prospective buyers expect housing availability to improve. In the third quarter of 2022, 37% of buyers expect the home search to get easier in the months ahead, up from 17% and 22% in the first and second quarters of…
Real GDP grew in the third quarter, after shrinking for the first two straight quarters of 2022. This quarter’s growth was mostly fueled by a decline in the trade deficit. More important, the data from the GDP report suggests that inflation is cooling. The GDP…
Housing’s share of the economy edged lower at the end of the third quarter of 2022. This is the first quarter where GDP increased for 2022, with overall GDP increasing at a 2.6% annual rate, following a 0.6% decrease in the second quarter and 1.6%…
Rising mortgage rates approaching 7% along with declining builder sentiment stemming from stubbornly high construction costs and weakening consumer demand pushed new-home sales down at a double-digit rate in September. Following a brief uptick in August, sales of newly built, single-family homes in September fell…
