Economics

NAHB’s Economics team provides in-depth economic analysis of the most significant issues and latest trends driving the housing industry. In addition to national housing market data, this section includes state and local data for the Western region.

Housing Market Snapshot

* Seasonally Adjusted Annual Rate; Arrows indicate the direction from the previous month for starts and sales and year for prices.

NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index: The index, which measures builder confidence in the market for newly built single-family homes, rose seven points to 42 in February from a reading of 35 in January. This was the largest monthly increase for builder sentiment since June 2013, excluding the period immediately after the onset of the pandemic. Any number under 50 indicates that more builders view sales conditions as poor than good.

NAHB Chief Economist Robert Dietz’s analysis

“Housing construction weakened in January as ongoing affordability conditions fueled by high mortgage rates and building material costs challenged the market. In the near-term, we expect ongoing volatility for mortgage rates and housing costs. The home building market should be able to achieve stability in the coming months, followed by a rebound back to trend home construction levels later in 2023 and the beginning of 2024. And while a recent two-month upturn in builder sentiment is a further sign that a turning point for single-family construction could take hold in the months ahead, policymakers need to fix the supply chain for building materials to ensure builders can add the additional inventory the housing market desperately needs.”

Labor and Workforce Data

• Employment by State and Metro Areas: Access the latest data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics about overall employment and construction employees in your state and local metro areas.
• Western Region Workforce Data: Find the construction trades wage data for the 13 states comprising the Western region of the United States.