Sales of new U.S. single-family homes jumped 3.5 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 592,000 from a revised May total of 572,000, said the Commerce Department on Tuesday. The increase exceeded analyst expectations for a rate of 560,000. Sales for the first half of 2016 were 10.1 percent higher than the same period […]
Home prices continued to rise in May but at a slower pace. The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Home Price Indices for May shows the 20-city Composite posted a year-over-year gain of 5.2 percent in April, down from 5.4 percent in April. “Home prices continue to appreciate across the country,” says David M. Blitzer, Managing Director and […]
The Architecture Billings Index remained positive in June but slipped to 52.6 to 53.1, according to the latest survey by the American institute of Architects. The new projects inquiry index dropped to 58.6 from 60.1 the previous month. Any reading above 50 indicates a growth in design services. “Demand for residential projects has surged this […]
Housing starts rose 4.8 percent in June to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,189,000, exceeding analyst expectations for the month. On a year-over-year basis, starts were 2.0 percent lower than the rate of 1,334,000 in June 2015. May’s estimate was revised downward to 1.14 million unit rate from the previously reported 1.16 million units. […]
Below is the latest release issued by the the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI) regarding residential and commercial heating and cooling equipment shipments through May 2016. You may read the press release on their website here. Residential Storage Water Heaters U.S. shipments of residential gas storage water heaters for May 2016 decreased 13.6 percent […]
The Dodge Momentum Index leapt 11.2 percent in June for a reading of 134.4 from the revised May reading of 120.8. Dodge Data & Analytics attributes the jump to a 14.6 percent increase in institutional construction planning and a 7.7 percent increase in commercial planning. Writes Dodge: “The gain in commercial planning reports is a […]
Each month the Commerce Department issues its Construction Put in Place (CPIP) data, usually on the first working day covering activity two months earlier. May data was released on Friday July 1st and included revisions back to January 2014. Construction Put in Place is based on spending work as it occurs, estimated for a given […]
Despite a 2.5 percent year-over-year increase in June, U.S. automotive sales were slower than the 4.0 percent expected by most analysts. WardsAuto reports sales totaled 1.5 million units last month but the seasonally adjusted annual rate was 16.6 million units, well below the 17.0 million in June 2015 and at the slowest sales pace of […]
The Associated General Contractors of America report that construction spending fell 0.8 percent in May to $1.143 trillion. Most of the decline was due to lower spending in private nonresidential construction. The press release from AGC follows: Construction spending dipped in May but posted strong, broad-based gains for the first five months of 2016 compared […]
The Associated General Contractors of America report that declining infrastructure investment has led to declining or stagnant construction employment in May. The latest report from AGC follows. Construction employment declined or was stagnant in 131, or 37 percent, of 358 metro areas between May 2015 and May 2016, according to a new analysis of federal […]
Home prices continued to climb in April according to the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices. Data released for April 2016 20-city composite showed a 0.5 percent month-over-month increase, and a gain of 5.4 percent year-over-year. Year-over-year rates were highest in cities in the West with Portland up 12.3 percent, Seattle up 10.7 percent, and Denver gaining […]
Existing home sales in May grew to their highest pace in over nine years, said the National Association of Realtors in their most recent report. Sales were up 1.8 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.53 million, compared to the downwardly revised April rate of 5.43 million. Existing sales, completed transactions that include […]
Sales of new single family homes were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 551,000, according to the latest data from the Department of Commerce. May’s sales were 6.0 percent below the revised April rate of 586,000 from the initial estimate of 619,000. Year over year sales were up 8.7 percent. A poll by Reuters […]
Light vehicle (LV) sales in May were 17.5 million units, about the same as April but down from 17.8 million in May last year. All sales numbers in this analysis are at a seasonally adjusted annual rate. Figure 1 shows the auto and light truck components since January 2004. In May, auto sales were the […]
Housing starts in May fell 0.3 percent from April’s revised estimate of 1,167,000 to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,138,000, according to the Department of Commerce. The rate, however, was 9.5 percent above the May 2015 estimate. The month-to-month slip was due to construction of fewer multi-family housing units. “Despite May’s relatively flat report, […]
Below is the latest release issued by the the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI) regarding residential and commercial heating and cooling equipment shipments through April 2016. You may read the press release on their website here. Residential Storage Water Heaters U.S. shipments of residential gas storage water heaters for April 2016 shifted slightly to […]
The Dodge Momentum Index, a monthly measure of the initial report for nonresidential building projects in planning, rose 2.4 percent to 119.4 in May. The commercial sector led the increase with a 6.4 percent gain, offsetting the 3.4 percent decline in institutional construction planning. “May’s increase places the overall Index 3.6% higher than its year-ago […]
Each month the Commerce Department issues its Construction Put in Place (CPIP) data, usually on the first working day covering activity two months earlier. April data was released on Wednesday June 1st. Construction Put in Place is based on spending work as it occurs, estimated for a given month from a sample of projects. In […]
U.S. auto sales may have finally reached the peak that that analysts have been predicting. Overall the market declined 6 percent for sales of 1,536,276 light vehicles. WardsAuto places May’s seasonally adjusted annual rate at 17.4 million units, up from 17.3 in April, but short of the 17.6 million from a year ago. Trucks once […]
The latest release of the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices shows home prices continue to rise across the U.S. On a year-over-year basis, the U.S. National Home Price Index in March gained 5.2 percent while the 10- and 20-City Composites remained unchanged at 4.7 percent and 5.4 percent, respectively. On a month-over-month seasonally adjusted basis the […]
Both auto and light truck sales in the US dropped abruptly in March but recovered to different degrees in April. Auto sales declined from 7.4 million units in February at a seasonally adjusted annualized rate (SAAR) to 6.9 million in March then recovered partially to 7.1 million in April. Light trucks declined from 10.2 million […]
Sales of new single-family houses in April surged 16.6 percent from March to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 619,000, according to estimates released by the Commerce Department. The increase in percentage was the highest since January 1992 and the highest annual rate since 2008. Sales were up 23.8 percent from the April 2015. March […]
The National Association of Realtors reports existing home sales in April rose 1.7 percent from March for a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.45 million. Sales were 6.0 percent higher than in April 2015. “Primarily driven by a convincing jump in the Midwest, where home prices are most affordable, sales activity overall was at a […]
Housing starts in April increased 6.6 percent from the previous month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,172,000, according to data from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Commerce Department. On a year over year basis housing start were down 1.7 percent. Single-family housing starts in April were at a […]
Below is the latest release issued by the the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI) regarding residential and commercial heating and cooling equipment shipments through March 2016. You may read the press release on their website here. Residential Storage Water Heaters U.S. shipments of residential gas storage water heaters for March 2016 decreased 21.6 percent […]
Each month the Commerce Department issues its Construction Put in Place (CPIP) data, usually on the first working day covering activity two months earlier. March data was released on Monday May 2nd. Construction Put in Place is based on spending work as it occurs, estimated for a given month from a sample of projects. In […]
Economists participating last week in the CMD Webinar: Is Construction Gaining or Waning were generally optimistic about the economy and forecast for construction growth. Although some sectors of construction peaked last year, growth is continuing in almost all areas, although at a slower pace. During the webinar, chief economists Ken Simonson, Associated General Contractors of […]
The Dodge Momentum Index rose 0.6 percent in April to 116.5 from a revised March reading of 115.8. Planning for commercial construction increased 0.8 percent and institutional planning rose 0.4 percent. Institutional planning, although volatile on a month-to-month basis, continues to recover and is now seven percent above year ago levels. The pace for commercial […]
The Associated General Contractors of America, on May 1, released their March analysis of construction spending. Construction spending in March 2016 was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1.138 trillion. SMU looked back at past March analyses and found an upward trend in spending for the month. In March 2014 construction spending totaled $943 […]
U.S. automakers reported strong sales in April. WardsAuto expects the seasonally adjusted annual rate to reach 17.6 million units, surpassing last month’s rate of 16.6 million and 2015’s rate of 16.7 million. Volume sales for the month are expected to reach 1.51 million units exceeding the previous record for the month set in 2005. Sales […]