Home Builder Confidence Slips in March

Posted March 17, 2015

Photo credit: Great Valley Center / Foter / CC BY

U.S. Housing Market

As home builder confidence slips in March the U.S. housing markets continue to show signs of sputtering. The monthly survey of the National Association of Home Builders / Wells Fargo Housing Market Index or HMI dropped from 55 points to 53 points in March. A number over 50 indicates the new home builders have a positive business sentiment but the fact that it is dropping is something to keep an eye on. In March of 2014, the index was at 46 so this is an improvement from last year.

Tom Woods, the National Association of Home Builders Chairman said that “Even with this slight slip, the HMI remains in positive territory and we expect the market to improve as we enter the spring buying season.” While David Crowe, Chief Economist with the National Association of Home Builders believes that “Most of the country was under a deep freeze this winter so that may have something to do with the drop.” and that “The drop in builder confidence is largely attributable to supply-chain issues, such as lot and labor shortages, as well as tight underwriting standards,” and that “These obstacles notwithstanding, we are expecting solid gains in the housing market this year, buoyed by sustained job growth, low mortgage interest rates, and pent-up demand.”

Locally in the South builder sentiment fell 2 points. This is in line with what we saw in the FishHawk Real Estate Market Stats for February 2015. The U.S. real estate market and the local FishHawk Ranch real estate markets are definitely showing signs of slowing.

If you are trying to sell your FishHawk Ranch home I’m sure you saw a little less buyer traffic this month. Along with the slowing demand, it looks as if 80% of the current “Active” homes for sale in FishHawk Ranch are overpriced. This would be a good time to reevaluate your pricing strategy to ensure your home is properly priced to sell for top dollar.

If you are looking to buy a home in FishHawk Ranch, I’ve got some good news for you. This market is changing from a seller’s market to a more balanced market. There are homes currently for sale, we have seen some nice price reductions and interest rates are still at historic lows. For the first time in a year and a half, this is becoming a really good time to buy.

About the author

The above FishHawk Ranch real estate article “Home Builder Confidence Slips in March” was written by Jeff Gould, a top-selling nationally recognized REALTOR® and local FishHawk Ranch real estate expert. You will find Jeff selling homes in Tampa Bay, Florida, and surrounding areas. Some of those areas include FishHawk, Lithia, Riverview, Valrico, Brandon, and Tampa.

If you are looking to sell or buy a Tampa Bay area home, Jeff is your local and trusted professional. He can be reached via phone/text at (813) 421-3007 or by contacting him below.

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