“As household incomes rise, builders in many markets across the nation are reporting they are seeing more serious buyers, a positive sign that the housing market continues to move forward”, NAHB Chairman Ed Brady, a home builder and developer from Bloomington, Illinois said in a statement.
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The National Association of Homebuilders’ monthly housing market index jumped to 65 in September, matching an 11-month high that was the best since 2005.
The August figure was originally reported at 60.
Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal expected a September reading of 60. That was the highest since last October, which was the highest since the height of the housing boom. Scores for each component are then used to calculate a seasonally adjusted index where any number over 50 indicates that more builders view conditions as good than poor.
This was matched the level set in October 2015.
Builders are more likely to begin projects when they are confident. A pullback in fixed residential investment during the second quarter was a drag on overall USA growth.
America’s home builders are more confident about their business than they’ve been in nearly a year, and the spike was greatest in the West.
Home builder confidence surged in September to match its highest reading in a decade, an industry group said Monday.
“We have been frustrated by the stubborn refusal of the homebuilders to react to the increase in mortgage demand and new home sales this year, but this report makes up all the lost ground”.
The current sales expectations index rose to 71 from 65 with the future expectations index also rising to 71 from 66. The NAHB also remained confident that upward momentum would be sustained into 2017. The index measuring traffic of prospective buyers also increased by four points to 48.
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In the NAHB’s regions, the three-month moving average index rose in three of four regions.
