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By Susanne Dwyer

Privately-owned housing units authorized by building permits in May were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,138,000. This is 0.7 percent (±1.3%)* above the revised April rate of 1,130,000, but is 10.1 percent (±1.8%) below the May 2015 estimate of 1,266,000. This, according to a joint announcement Friday on new residential construction statistics for May 2016, from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Single-family authorizations in May were at a rate of 726,000; this is 2.0 percent (±0.9%) below the revised April figure of 741,000. Authorizations of units in buildings with five units or more were at a rate of 381,000 in May.

According to realtor.com® Chief Economist, Jonathan Smoke, “Collectively, recent readings on new construction show little change from what we have already been observing this spring: Total permits are down on a year-over-year basis because of a substantial decline in multi-family construction, and single-family construction is continuing to show gains but the monthly pattern is erratic.”

According to the release, privately-owned housing starts in May were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,164,000. This is 0.3 percent (±14.0%)* below the revised April estimate of 1,167,000, but is 9.5 percent (±16.0%)* above the May 2015 rate of 1,063,000.

Single-family housing starts in May were at a rate of 764,000; this is 0.3 percent (±13.8%)* above the revised April figure of 762,000. The May rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 396,000.

“Starts, on the other hand,” Smoke continued, “are still showing year-over-year gains in total, for both single-family and multi-family. However, the most troubling sign in this year’s new construction data is the continued trend of four straight months of starts exceeding permits. This is an important signal that builders are slowing expansion. With starts exceeding permits, and permits on decline on a year-over-year basis, it appears that we will have even fewer starts and completions six months down the road.”

Privately-owned housing completions in May were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 988,000. This is 5.1 percent (±15.5%)* above the revised April estimate of 940,000, but is 3.5 percent (±13.1%)* below the May 2015 rate of 1,024,000.

Single-family housing completions in May were at a rate of 717,000; this is 2.3 percent (±14.8%)* above the revised April rate of 701,000. The May rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 263,000.

Quicken Loans Vice President Bill Banfield offers the following comments on the report:

“The dip in housing starts in May was primarily driven by regional drops in the Northeast and Midwest, yet year-over-year growth remains high. Another month of gains in building permits coupled with near record low rates provide opportunity for a bounce back in new home sales.”

For more information, visit www.census.gov.

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From:: Finance and Economy

By Susanne Dwyer

Privately-owned housing units authorized by building permits in May were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,138,000. This is 0.7 percent (±1.3%)* above the revised April rate of 1,130,000, but is 10.1 percent (±1.8%) below the May 2015 estimate of 1,266,000. This, according to a joint announcement Friday on new residential construction statistics for May 2016, from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Single-family authorizations in May were at a rate of 726,000; this is 2.0 percent (±0.9%) below the revised April figure of 741,000. Authorizations of units in buildings with five units or more were at a rate of 381,000 in May.

According to realtor.com® Chief Economist, Jonathan Smoke, “Collectively, recent readings on new construction show little change from what we have already been observing this spring: Total permits are down on a year-over-year basis because of a substantial decline in multi-family construction, and single-family construction is continuing to show gains but the monthly pattern is erratic.”

According to the release, privately-owned housing starts in May were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,164,000. This is 0.3 percent (±14.0%)* below the revised April estimate of 1,167,000, but is 9.5 percent (±16.0%)* above the May 2015 rate of 1,063,000.

Single-family housing starts in May were at a rate of 764,000; this is 0.3 percent (±13.8%)* above the revised April figure of 762,000. The May rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 396,000.

“Starts, on the other hand,” Smoke continued, “are still showing year-over-year gains in total, for both single-family and multi-family. However, the most troubling sign in this year’s new construction data is the continued trend of four straight months of starts exceeding permits. This is an important signal that builders are slowing expansion. With starts exceeding permits, and permits on decline on a year-over-year basis, it appears that we will have even fewer starts and completions six months down the road.”

Privately-owned housing completions in May were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 988,000. This is 5.1 percent (±15.5%)* above the revised April estimate of 940,000, but is 3.5 percent (±13.1%)* below the May 2015 rate of 1,024,000.

Single-family housing completions in May were at a rate of 717,000; this is 2.3 percent (±14.8%)* above the revised April rate of 701,000. The May rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 263,000.

Quicken Loans Vice President Bill Banfield offers the following comments on the report:

“The dip in housing starts in May was primarily driven by regional drops in the Northeast and Midwest, yet year-over-year growth remains high. Another month of gains in building permits coupled with near record low rates provide opportunity for a bounce back in new home sales.”

For more information, visit www.census.gov.

…read more

From:: Real Estate News

By Susanne Dwyer

In May, mortgage applications for new home purchases decreased by 6 percent relative to the previous month, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) Builder Application Survey (BAS).This change does not include any adjustment for typical seasonal patterns.

“Despite applications being down in May, each month this year has seen positive year over year growth in mortgage applications for new homes, and we expect modest growth in housing starts to be reported later this week as the spring building season continues, ” says Lynn Fisher, MBA’s Vice President of Research and Economics. “While mortgage applications for new homes have declined almost 17 percent on an unadjusted basis from their peak in March of this year, applications in May remain eight percent above their level from the same time one year ago.”

By product type, conventional loans composed 68.4 percent of loan applications, FHA loans composed 17.6 percent, RHS/USDA loans composed 0.6 percent and VA loans composed 13.4 percent. The average loan size of new homes increased from $325,233 in April to $328,032 in May.

The MBA estimates new single-family home sales were running at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 488,000 units in May 2016, based on data from the BAS. The new home sales estimate is derived using mortgage application information from the BAS, as well as assumptions regarding market coverage and other factors.

The seasonally adjusted estimate for May is a decrease of 3 percent from the April pace of 503,000 units. On an unadjusted basis, the MBA estimates that there were 47,000 new home sales in May 2016, a decrease of 2.1 percent from 48,000 new home sales in April.

MBA’s Builder Application Survey tracks application volume from mortgage subsidiaries of home builders across the country. Utilizing this data, as well as data from other sources, MBA is able to provide an early estimate of new home sales volumes at the national, state, and metro level. This data also provides information regarding the types of loans used by new home buyers. Official new home sales estimates are conducted by the Census Bureau on a monthly basis. In that data, new home sales are recorded at contract signing, which is typically coincident with the mortgage application.

For additional information on MBA’s Builder Applications Survey, click here.

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From:: Real Estate News