Tag Archives: Census Bureau

A Census report released Monday put construction spending at an estimated annual rate of $860.8 billion (seasonally adjusted) in April, a 0.4 percent rise from March's revised estimate of $857.7 billion. Spending on homebuilding was at an estimated yearly rate of $308.3 billion in April, 0.2 percent down from March but 18.3 percent above April 2012. The report is consistent with the National Association of Home Builders' Housing Market Index, which dropped in April as builders contended with low credit availability and rising costs.

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported a disappointing 0.3 percent gain in its Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) in April.

The last time both prices and sales of new homes increased in the same month was last September. What of course is missing from the two data sets is any indication of demand.

The price of a new single-family home soared to a record high in April as sales jumped 2.3 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 454,000, the Census Bureau and HUD reported Thursday. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg expected April sales to increase to 425,000 from March's originally reported 417,000. March sales were revised to 444,000. The median price of a new home, according to the Census/HUD report, soared $20,900 (8.3 percent) in April to $271,600, the highest price on record.

In sharp contrast to reports of improving builder confidence, housing starts plunged at the steepest rate in more than two years in April.

Driven by stronger auto sales (but held back by falling gasoline prices), total retail sales increased an unexpected 0.1 percent in April, the Census Bureau reported Monday. Economists had expected sales to fall 0.3 percent. Sales at building material and supply stores jumped $389 million for the month, a 1.5 percent increase--the largest month-over-month increase since September. Sales at furniture and home furnishings stores were flat to March. Those two retail categories have a direct relationship to home sales.

When the Federal Open Market Committee completed its two-day meeting at the beginning of May, it issued the usual six-paragraph post-meeting statement.

In an analysis released in response to the Census Bureau's report that homeownership hit an 18-year low in the first quarter, Capital Economics warns that we may not have seen the bottom yet. The firm predicted last year that the homeownership rate would decline to a low of 64 percent--a forecast it insists will come sometime within the next year. One factor contributing to the downward trend in homeownership is tight lending standards, Capital Economics says.

The Census Bureau released Wednesday a report showing a decline in construction spending throughout March. According to Census data, construction spending in March was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $856.7 billion, a 1.7 percent drop from February's revised estimate of $871.8 billion. While total spending fell, spending for housing construction inched up. According to the report, residential construction spending was at annual rate of $301.6 billion.

The nation's homeownership rate fell to 65 percent in the first quarter of 2013, according to data from the Census Bureau.