Home builder confidence was crushed this month and cam in well below analyst estimates. The numbers from the National Association of Home Builders reported that the Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index declined one point to 13, its lowest level since March of 2009.
In March, the economy was barely free of the recession which makes the figure ever more depressing. The NAHB announcement confirms the weakening of the housing markets based on data about underwater mortgages, the failure of HAMP to help stem foreclosures, and RealtyTrac data on monthly defaults.
“Builders are expressing the same concerns that they are hearing from consumers right now, particularly the sense that the overall economy and job market aren’t gaining any traction,” said NAHB Chairman Bob Jones, a home builder from Bloomfield Hills, Mich. “Meanwhile, many continue to report that problems with inaccurate appraisals, competition from the large number of distressed properties on the market, and tight consumer lending conditions are causing them to lose potential sales.”
Inaccurate appraisals make banks extremely skittish about making home loans because they cannot be certain about the value of the real estate asset that they take as collateral
Douglas A. McIntyre
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