Lumber prices may soon start to recede from their recent record highs, and some home builders say they may stop taking new orders or delay projects with that expectation in mind.Prices for lumber have surged more than 200% over the past 12 months. That has added an estimated $36,000 to the price of an average new single-family home, according to the National Association of Home Builders.But the sky-high prices may soon back off: Lumber futur
Builders are building more, even though overall housing inventories still feel tight. Builders in April constructed about 24% more homes than they did in April over the last couple of decades, the National Association of REALTORS® reports. Housing starts are likely to reach 1.6 million for all of 2021 and jump to 1.7 million in 2022, NAR projects.Building permits are viewed as a gauge of future housing inventory. They provide an estimate of the
The challenges to build a home continue to mount for the nation’s builders. Material shortages—such as for lumber, appliances, windows, and doors—are at the tightest levels in history, the National Association of Home Builders reports.About 90% of builders recently surveyed across the country reported shortages of appliances, framing lumber, oriented strand board, plywood, and more, the survey shows. The shortages have worsened over the pas
Sales of newly built single-family homes dropped 5.9% in April compared to March, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau reported on Tuesday. Sales are dropping, and builders are blaming affordability as the main culprit for why.New-home sales prices have jumped 20% compared to a year ago.“Affordability factors are clearly affecting new-home sales,” said Chuck Fowke, chairman of the National Associatio
Housing starts dropped in April as builders saw rising building costs hamper inventory and affordability. Housing production fell 9.5% last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.57 million units, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau reported Tuesday.While homebuilding is down, the demand for new homes continues. The latest homebuilding data is “discouraging at first glance,” said Lawrence Y
After one of the swiftest economic declines in history at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. economy has experienced a significant recovery that began in the third quarter of 2020 and is continuing into 2021, experts said on Friday at the Commercial Economic Issues and Trends Forum. The panel discussion during the virtual REALTORS® Legislative Meetings explored the implications of the recovery for commercial real estate, pred
The median existing-home price for a single-family home in March jumped to a record high of $334,500, according to data from the National Association of REALTORS®. Meanwhile, the median sales price of a newly built home was $330,800, according to U.S. Census Bureau data.New homes are traditionally more expensive than used homes. The scenario in which existing homes sell for more than a new home hasn’t occurred in more than 15 years, CNBC repor
It’s a good time to work in a new-home niche as new-home construction becomes more attractive to home shoppers since the pandemic. The number of existing homes for sale has dropped to historic lows while builders are ramping up production. More than a quarter—25.7%—of single-family homes for sale during the first quarter were new-construction homes, according to a national analysis of real estate data from Redfin.“Building homes has becom
Some buyers may be drawn to the charm and character of an older home. On the other hand, other buyers may prefer the newest floor plans and features.Homes.com scoured listings for sales nationwide to find the number of homes built by 1940, prior to 2000, in 2000 or later, or between 2016 and 2020. Then, they separated the listings into four categories based on these breakdowns: Pre-war homes, older homes, newer homes, and modern homes.Source:&nbs
Buyers who purchase newly constructed homes are paying more not only because of intense competition in the market but also surging lumber prices. Record-breaking growth for the cost of lumber is pressing on builders’ budgets and prompting them to pass along price increases to buyers.The increase in lumber prices over the past year has added $35,872 to the price of an average new single-family home and $12,966 to the price of
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