The report contains good news for potential home buyers. The inventory continues to rise rapidly, with the total number of available new houses for sale by 500,000, an increase of 7.8% year after year. The median selling price was $ 414,500, a decrease of 3.1% compared to January and an increase of 1.5% after year.
Nevertheless, the overall inventory remains limited, and despite the recent fall in mortgage interest, they remain an obstacle for many home customers.
“New housing sales are about the right in 2025 so far, because the constantly limited inventory of existing houses in many markets continues to support the need for new houses,” Buddy Hughes, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (Nahb), said in a statement.
“Although policy uncertainty can stop some buyers and business decisions, builders have the hope that the reform of the regulations and the expansion of the tax policy will function later this year as in the battle.”
The somewhat improving market for the sale of new house coincides with comparable positive news for existing houses. The report February of the National Association of Realtors (NAR) showed the sale of existing home with a seasonal annual percentage of 4.26 million, an increase of 4.2% compared to January but a decrease of 1.2% year after year.
The relative light point for housing builders can be short -lived, because President Donald Trump continues to threaten a wide range of rates that apparently shift daily. Some of these would have a direct influence on the costs of building materials.
The president has already placed a rate of 25% on steel and aluminum – and has driven the idea to double it to 50%. He has threatened various rates for Canadian wood, including a “other” rate that would have the American rate on the American timber frame. The silver lining for builders There is that Canada has no rate for the import of wood from the US
April 2 is a critical day for home builders. That is when the one -month break at Mexican and Canadian rates is planned to expire. If Trump lets that happen, it would resume a rate of 25% on goods from these countries that are not covered by the United States-Mexico-Canada agreement (USMCA).
Even more explosive before April 2 is that the global mutual rates of Trump come into effect. As a result, the US would match the rates that other countries place in American exports. Although the details and logistics of this policy are currently on the move, it can work out economies and companies around the world.
The situation makes builders feel down, such as the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) has shown that the confidence of builders in February and March is falling with six points. NAHB said it has received reports that builders already have an extra $ 7,500 to $ 10,000 prizes for the construction costs, despite the fact that some of the rates are not in force.
“A factor that is worth seeing is the pace of new housing,” said Bright MLS Chief Economist Lisa Sturtevant in a statement. “At the moment the new home inventory is increasing because there are fewer buyers and houses that started last year. But some home builders withdraw at start and permits for new construction, because they assess the possible effects of rates and immigration policy.”
