WASHINGTON, DC—Wall Street has been whipsawed by events this week. The rest of the business community is not too happy about developments either.
But one group had their smiles on: homebuilders. Sales of newly built, single-family homes rose 5.4% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 507,000 units in July, according to data from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development and the US Census Bureau.
The industry's association was, not surprisingly, pleased.
"Our builders are reporting higher traffic and more serious buyers, and are adding inventory in anticipation of future business," said Tom Woods, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders and a home builder from Blue Springs, Mo.
In fact, the numbers should be pleasing across all industries as they point to an underlying fundamentally solid US economy. "Today's report is in line with other government data and improving builder sentiment and shows a gradual but consistent housing recovery,” said NAHB Chief Economist David Crowe.
Earlier this month, HUD and the Commerce Department reported that housing starts rose by 0.2% to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 1.206 million units in July – the highest level since October 2007.
The housing market should make additional gains this year as job growth and consumer confidence continue to strengthen, he added.
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Erika Morphy
Erika Morphy has been writing about commercial real estate at GlobeSt.com for more than ten years, covering the capital markets, the Mid-Atlantic region and national topics. She's a nerd so favorite examples of the former include accounting standards, Basel III and what Congress is brewing.
