[Home]  [Headlines]  [Latest Articles]  [Latest Comments]  [Post]  [Mail]  [Sign-in]  [Setup]  [Help]  [Register] 

"International court’s attack on Israel a sign of the free world’s moral collapse"

"Pete Hegseth Is Right for the DOD"

"Why Our Constitution Secures Liberty, Not Democracy"

Woodworking and Construction Hacks

"CNN: Reporters Were Crying and Hugging in the Hallways After Learning of Matt Gaetz's AG Nomination"

"NEW: Democrat Officials Move to Steal the Senate Race in Pennsylvania, Admit to Breaking the Law"

"Pete Hegseth Is a Disruptive Choice for Secretary of Defense. That’s a Good Thing"

Katie Britt will vote with the McConnell machine

Battle for Senate leader heats up — Hit pieces coming from Thune and Cornyn.

After Trump’s Victory, There Can Be No Unity Without A Reckoning

Vivek Ramaswamy, Dark-horse Secretary of State Candidate

Megyn Kelly has a message for Democrats. Wait for the ending.

Trump to choose Tom Homan as his “Border Czar”

"Trump Shows Demography Isn’t Destiny"

"Democrats Get a Wake-Up Call about How Unpopular Their Agenda Really Is"

Live Election Map with ticker shows every winner.

Megyn Kelly Joins Trump at His Final PA Rally of 2024 and Explains Why She's Supporting Him

South Carolina Lawmaker at Trump Rally Highlights Story of 3-Year-Old Maddie Hines, Killed by Illegal Alien

GOP Demands Biden, Harris Launch Probe into Twice-Deported Illegal Alien Accused of Killing Grayson Davis

Previously-Deported Illegal Charged With Killing Arkansas Children’s Hospital Nurse in Horror DUI Crash

New Data on Migrant Crime Rates Raises Eyebrows, Alarms

Thousands of 'potentially fraudulent voter registration applications' Uncovered, Stopped in Pennsylvania

Michigan Will Count Ballot of Chinese National Charged with Voting Illegally

"It Did Occur" - Kentucky County Clerk Confirms Voting Booth 'Glitch'' Shifted Trump Votes To Kamala

Legendary Astronaut Buzz Aldrin 'wholeheartedly' Endorses Donald Trump

Liberal Icon Naomi Wolf Endorses Trump: 'He's Being More Inclusive'

(Washed Up Has Been) Singer Joni Mitchell Screams 'F*** Trump' at Hollywood Bowl

"Analysis: The Final State of the Presidential Race"

He’ll, You Pieces of Garbage

The Future of Warfare -- No more martyrdom!

"Kamala’s Inane Talking Points"

"The Harris Campaign Is Testament to the Toxicity of Woke Politics"

Easy Drywall Patch

Israel Preparing NEW Iran Strike? Iran Vows “Unimaginable” Response | Watchman Newscast

In Logansport, Indiana, Kids are Being Pushed Out of Schools After Migrants Swelled County’s Population by 30%: "Everybody else is falling behind"

Exclusive — Bernie Moreno: We Spend $110,000 Per Illegal Migrant Per Year, More than Twice What ‘the Average American Makes’

Florida County: 41 of 45 People Arrested for Looting after Hurricanes Helene and Milton are Noncitizens

Presidential race: Is a Split Ticket the only Answer?

hurricanes and heat waves are Worse

'Backbone of Iran's missile industry' destroyed by IAF strikes on Islamic Republic

Joe Rogan Experience #2219 - Donald Trump

IDF raids Hezbollah Radwan Forces underground bases, discovers massive cache of weapons

Gallant: ‘After we strike in Iran,’ the world will understand all of our training

The Atlantic Hit Piece On Trump Is A Psy-Op To Justify Post-Election Violence If Harris Loses

Six Al Jazeera journalists are Hamas, PIJ terrorists

Judge Aileen Cannon, who tossed Trump's classified docs case, on list of proposed candidates for attorney general

Iran's Assassination Program in Europe: Europe Goes Back to Sleep

Susan Olsen says Brady Bunch revival was cancelled because she’s MAGA.

Foreign Invaders crisis cost $150B in 2023, forcing some areas to cut police and fire services: report

Israel kills head of Hezbollah Intelligence.


Status: Not Logged In; Sign In

Business
See other Business Articles

Title: Homebuilder Confidence Rises to Six-Year High as U.S. Sales Jump
Source: Bloomberg
URL Source: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012- ... ar-high-as-u-s-sales-jump.html
Published: Nov 19, 2012
Author: Shobhana Chandra
Post Date: 2012-11-19 10:16:26 by Brian S
Keywords: None
Views: 1567
Comments: 1

Confidence among U.S. homebuilders unexpectedly climbed in November to a six-year high, propelled by the biggest jump in sales in a decade, adding to signs the real-estate market is improving.

The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo index of builder confidence increased to 46, the highest level since May 2006, from 41 in October, figures from the Washington-based group showed today. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of 49 economists called for no change. Readings below 50 mean more respondents said conditions were poor.

Companies like Toll Brothers Inc. (TOL) are benefiting as more affordable properties and record-low mortgage rates bring buyers into the market. Faster hiring, fewer foreclosures and easier credit would ensure a sustained rebound in the industry that was at the center of the 2008 financial crisis.

“Builders are reporting increasing demand for new homes as inventories of foreclosed and distressed properties begin to shrink in markets across the country,” Barry Rutenberg, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders and a builder from Gainesville, Florida, said in a statement. “In view of the tightening supply and other improving conditions, many potential buyers who were on the fence are now motivated to move forward with a purchase in order to take advantage of today’s favorable prices and interest rates.”

Estimates in the Bloomberg survey ranged from 37 to 44. The index, which was first published in January 1985, averaged 54 in the five years leading to the recession that began in December 2007. It reached a record low of 8 in January 2009.

Current Sales

The builders group’s index of present single-family home sales advanced to 49 this month, also the highest since May 2006, from 41 in the prior month. The eight-point jump was the biggest since September 2002.

The gauge of buyer traffic was unchanged at 35. A measure of sales expectations for the next six months rose to 53, the highest since February 2007, from 51.

The confidence survey asks builders to characterize current sales as “good,” “fair” or “poor” and to gauge prospective buyers’ traffic. It also asks participants to gauge the outlook for the next six months.

Confidence improved among builders in three of the four U.S. regions, led by the Midwest, where the gauge jumped to 51 from 40 in October. Builders in the South and West also reported increases. Confidence in the Northeast fell to 31 from 32.

Storm’s Impact

The survey was taken in the two weeks following superstorm Sandy, which came ashore Oct. 29 in the Northeast, killing more than 100 people, disrupting rail and subway service, and leaving more than 8 million homes and businesses without power for days.

The report “therefore does reflect builder sentiment during that period,” the group said in a statement.

Toll Brothers, the Horsham, Pennsylvania-based luxury homebuilder, is among companies citing signs that the market has turned and will probably keep improving.

“We’re in a strong phase of the recovery,” Martin Connor, chief financial officer, said during a conference presentation on Nov. 15. “It’s a function of five years of pent-up demand being released,” and “ affordability and rising prices is also spurring people to buy.”

Declining mortgage costs are making it cheaper to buy a home. The average fixed rate on a 30-year loan dropped to a record-low 3.34 percent in the week ended Nov. 15, down from 4 percent a year ago, according to McLean, Virginia-based Freddie Mac data going back to 1971.

A Commerce Department report tomorrow may show that housing starts fell in October after reaching a four-year high the prior month. Builder broke ground on 840,000 houses at an annual rate last month, down from 872,000 in September, according to the Bloomberg survey median.

Post Comment   Private Reply   Ignore Thread  


TopPage UpFull ThreadPage DownBottom/Latest

#1. To: Brian S (#0)

And what's that Bottom 99% using for currency?

Part of the Turkey Day Eve News Dump:

FHA bailout approaching

When the no-down crap casino loans stopped being made in 2007 the FHA ramped up its loans to all the broke Americans (aka little to no savings) still wanting to pursue the American dream of home ownership:

www.doctorhousingbubble.c...-all-mortgages/#more-6068

mcgowanjm  posted on  2012-11-19   10:41:46 ET  Reply   Trace   Private Reply  


TopPage UpFull ThreadPage DownBottom/Latest

[Home]  [Headlines]  [Latest Articles]  [Latest Comments]  [Post]  [Mail]  [Sign-in]  [Setup]  [Help]  [Register] 

Please report web page problems, questions and comments to webmaster@libertysflame.com