Current sales conditions in the market for new single-family homes is restraining home builder optimism. Both coasts saw the most deterioration.
For the month of April, the Housing Market Index, a reflection home builders’ optimism about conditions in the new-home market, landed at 58.
An index level of more than 50 means that there are more home builders who view conditions as good than those who see conditions as poor.
The index is jointly maintained and published by the National Association of Home Builders and Wells Fargo.
There was no movement in the index compared to March. It was the third month in a row that the index was unchanged — a sign that the single-family market continues to recover, albeit at a slow pace — according to NAHB Chairman Ed Brady.
“As we enter the spring home buying season, we should see the market move forward,”
Brady stated in the report.
Based on a three-month moving average, builders in the West are most optimistic, with the index there at 67 — though that was down two points from a month earlier.
At 44, the Northeast index was lowest and also down two points from the last report.
In the South, the index decreased a point to 58.
A one-point loss in the Midwest put that index at 57.
The U.S. index is made up of three sub-indices.
The index for the first component, expected sales over the next six months, inched up to 62 from 61 in March.
Current buyer traffic, the second component, saw its index rise to 44 this month from 43.
But a two-point month-over-month decline left the index for the third component, current sales conditions, at 63.
