The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) said on Tuesday that its monthly index of homebuilder confidence jumped five point to 50 in May, the fifth consecutive monthly gain and the strongest reading since July 2022.
A funny thing happened on the way to the recession.
Home prices are likely to keep declining as interest rates climb higher.
Another sign that supply chain issues, inflation, and omicron are further disrupting the economy.
“Higher construction costs and supply shortages along with rising home prices pushed builder confidence to its lowest reading since July 2020,” the NAHB said.
Homebuilder confidence set a record high for the third consecutive month.
Home builders remain solidly confident but express worries that prices of labor and materials could be pushing up their costs.
While lumber prices are up sharply this year, there is little evidence connecting the tariffs to the rise. Instead, the major factor appears to be increasing demand for new homes.
