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Money & Company

Home builder confidence up a little, national index indicates

By W.J. Hennigan
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Builders are becoming a bit more optimistic about the market for new single-family homes, according to the National Assn. of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index, which attempts to measure builder confidence.

The national index, released today, spiked 2 points up from last month, to 17 in July. It’s the highest level seen since September, but it’s still relatively low. Any number less than 50 means that more builders view sales as poor. The jump in numbers is consistent with Wednesday’s revelation that the median housing price in Southern California jumped 6.4% in May.

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‘Builders are seeing slightly better sales conditions this month as consumers take advantage of the first-time buyer tax credit, low interest rates and attractive home prices, but many remain quite concerned about the road that lies ahead,” said Joe Robson, NAHB chairman, in a statement.

Confidence remained the same in the West at 15. In the other three regions the index tracks: It rose 5 points to 20 in the South, maintained at 14 in the Midwest and fell from 19 to 16 in the Northeast.

-- W.J. Hennigan

Money & Company
W.J. Hennigan

W.J. Hennigan covered the Pentagon and national security issues from Washington, D.C., before leaving the Los Angeles Times bureau in November 2017. While there, he reported on war, counter-terrorism, and the lives of American service members from more than two dozen countries and previously covered the aerospace and defense industry from Los Angeles. Hennigan earned awards from the National Press Club, the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation, and was a contributor to the Los Angeles Times coverage of the terror attacks in San Bernardino that won a Pulitzer Prize in 2016.

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