Christine Dugas
USA Today
WASHINGTON (Reuters) — The pace of U.S. home construction fell 14.3% in January, sharpest drop since October and much worse than economists had expected, a government report on Friday showed.
The drop followed two months of increases.
The Commerce Department said housing starts clocked an annual pace of 1.408 million units in January compared with a 1.643 million pace in December. January’s pace was the lowest in nearly 10 years.
Economists had forecast January housing starts to fall to a 1.60 million pace from December’s originally reported 1.642 million units annual rate.
Building permits, which offer a clue to future construction plans, fell 2.8% to a 1.568 million unit pace. Economists were expecting permits to register a 1.593 million pace, down from the revised 1.613 million pace of December.
Despite the gloomy data, a survey of builders’ confidence this week showed an uptick for February.
A private survey of home builders’ sentiment rose in February to its highest level since June 2006. The National Association of Home builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index jumped to 40 in February from 35 the previous month. Economists had predicted the index to remain unchanged. Readings below 50 indicate more builders view market conditions as poor rather than favorable.
Realtors expect home price recovery
By Christine Dugas, USA TODAY
Home prices are likely to spring back in the coming months, the National Association of Realtors predicted Thursday after reporting that median prices fell in 73 metro areas in the final three months of 2006.
Last year “was the year of contraction,” said David Lereah, the NAR’s chief economist. “When we get the figures for this spring, I expect to see a discernible improvement in both sales and prices.”
Even in an overall sluggish fourth quarter, 71 areas had price gains, the NAR said. And 14 of those areas saw double-digit year-over-year percentage gains.
“At least the bottom appears to have already occurred,” says Lawrence Yun, an NAR economist. “It looks like the figures will be improving. Whether or not that will be sustainable is a different question.”
Nationwide, the median sales price for an existing single-family home fell to $219,300 in the fourth quarter, down 2.7% from the same period in 2005.
Several once-sizzling markets in Florida continued to see price declines. The Sarasota-Bradenton-Venice area was worst hit; prices fell 18% in the fourth quarter.
Still, the NAR pointed out that despite the recent downturn in prices, gains for typical single-family homes the past five years have been robust in many metro areas — and explosive in others. In Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, Calif., for example, prices have soared 155.3% in the past five years.
Other parts of California have yet to benefit. In the inland areas, many builders who are struggling to move new-home inventory have caused prices to fall sharply, says Leslie Appleton-Young, chief economist of the California Association of Realtors.
Such price drops, though, are starting to lure buyers, a trend that could help lift the overall housing market. “Buyers are responding to seller pricing and incentives, and there’s pent-up demand as a result of buyer hesitation in the second half of 2006,” says Pat Vredevoogd Combs, the NAR’s president.
Among the areas that reported the biggest gains at the end of last year was Atlantic City, which saw a 25.9% jump in home prices in the fourth quarter, compared with the same period in 2005. And Trenton-Ewing, N.J., enjoyed an 18.9% rise in prices. It could post even better results this year.
“Interest rates remain extremely reasonable, and the buyers are out there and they’re buying; they’re not just shopping,” says Rosalie Daniels, broker-owner of RE/Max TriCounty in Hamilton Township, on the outskirts of Trenton. Written contracts for home sales in January 2007, Daniels says, are 35% ahead of the pace of January 2006.
Low mortgage rates should also help boost sales. The average 30-year fixed rate for 2006 was 6.40%; it’s now 6.30%, Freddie Mac said Thursday.
Median home prices in 149 metro areas
|
Metropolitan Area |
Price in thousands |
|
|
|
|
2005 Q4 |
2006 Q4 |
Change |
|
Akron, OH |
117.8 |
110.2 |
-6.5% |
|
|
|||
|
Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY |
190.8 |
198.7 |
4.1% |
|
|
|||
|
Albuquerque, NM |
174.1 |
187.5 |
7.7% |
|
|
|||
|
Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ |
245.7 |
249.7 |
1.6% |
|
|
|||
|
Amarillo, TX |
105.4 |
108.3 |
2.8% |
|
|
|||
|
Anaheim-Santa Ana, CA (Orange Co.) |
699.8 |
690.7 |
-1.3% |
|
|
|||
|
Appleton, WI |
129.3 |
128.4 |
-0.7% |
|
|
|||
|
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, GA |
170.2 |
166.8 |
-2.0% |
|
|
|||
|
Atlantic City, NJ |
269.9 |
339.8 |
25.9% |
|
|
|||
|
Austin-Round Rock, TX |
167.0 |
175.2 |
4.9% |
|
|
|||
|
Baltimore-Towson, MD |
265.1 |
277.9 |
4.8% |
|
|
|||
|
Barnstable Town, MA |
405.2 |
373.5 |
-7.8% |
|
|
|||
|
Baton Rouge, LA |
153.8 |
173.4 |
12.7% |
|
|
|||
|
Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX |
104.3 |
120.0 |
15.1% |
|
|
|||
|
Binghamton, NY |
95.8 |
95.8 |
Unch |
|
|
|||
|
Birmingham-Hoover, AL |
160.8 |
161.7 |
0.6% |
|
|
|||
|
Bismark, ND |
129.1 |
127.4 |
-1.3% |
|
|
|||
|
Bloomington-Normal, IL |
161.5 |
151.3 |
-6.3% |
|
|
|||
|
Boise City-Nampa, ID |
N/A |
209.5 |
N/A |
|
|
|||
|
Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA-NH |
397.5 |
388.0 |
-2.4% |
|
|
|||
|
Boulder, CO |
349.5 |
363.1 |
3.9% |
|
|
|||
|
Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT |
468.5 |
445.7 |
-4.9% |
|
|
|||
|
Buffalo-Niagara Falls, NY |
99.8 |
96.6 |
-3.2% |
|
|
|||
|
Canton-Massillon, OH |
106.1 |
106.2 |
0.1% |
|
|
|||
|
Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL |
293.1 |
258.9 |
-11.7% |
|
|
|||
|
Cedar Rapids, IA |
133.8 |
129.2 |
-3.4% |
|
|
|||
|
Champaign-Urbana, IL |
142.6 |
141.6 |
-0.7% |
|
|
|||
|
Charleston-North Charleston, SC |
198.4 |
210.9 |
6.3% |
|
|
|||
|
Charleston, WV |
117.3 |
114.3 |
-2.6% |
|
|
|||
|
Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord, NC-SC |
183.5 |
198.2 |
8.0% |
|
|
|||
|
Chattanooga, TN-GA |
132.6 |
134.6 |
1.5% |
|
|
|||
|
Chicago-Naperville-Joliet, IL |
265.6 |
268.1 |
0.9% |
|
|
|||
|
Cincinnati-Middletown, OH-KY-IN |
143.7 |
138.7 |
-3.5% |
|
|
|||
|
Cleveland-Elyria-Mentor, OH |
135.7 |
130.9 |
-3.5% |
|
|
|||
|
Colordo Springs, CO |
209.2 |
219.4 |
4.9% |
|
|
|||
|
Columbia, SC |
136.5 |
N/A |
N/A |
|
|
|||
|
Columbus, OH |
147.9 |
138.7 |
-6.2% |
|
|
|||
|
Corpus Christi, TX |
131.2 |
129.7 |
-1.1% |
|
|
|||
|
Cumberland, MD-WV |
85.7 |
98.0 |
14.4% |
|
|
|||
|
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX |
150.2 |
144.3 |
-3.9% |
|
|
|||
|
Danville, IL |
63.8 |
N/A |
N/A |
|
|
|||
|
Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL |
109.2 |
116.4 |
6.6% |
|
|
|||
|
Dayton, OH |
112.8 |
119.5 |
5.9% |
|
|
|||
|
Decatur, IL |
84.5 |
89.2 |
5.6% |
|
|
|||
|
Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, FL |
208.9 |
198.6 |
-4.9% |
|
|
|||
|
Denver-Aurora, CO |
247.5 |
245.6 |
-0.8% |
|
|
|||
|
Des Moines, IA |
147.2 |
144.5 |
-1.8% |
|
|
|||
|
Detroit-Warren-Livonia, MI |
156.2 |
154.6 |
-1.0% |
|
|
|||
|
Dover, DE |
185.7 |
200.5 |
8.0% |
|
|
|||
|
Durham, NC |
168.7 |
168.6 |
-0.1% |
|
|
|||
|
Elmira, NY |
78.8 |
78.4 |
-0.5% |
|
|
|||
|
El Paso, TX |
118.4 |
131.8 |
11.3% |
|
|
|||
|
Erie, PA |
99.7 |
102.6 |
2.9% |
|
|
|||
|
Eugene-Springfield, OR |
209.0 |
230.9 |
10.5% |
|
|
|||
|
Fargo, ND-MN |
134.6 |
136.6 |
1.5% |
|
|
|||
|
Farmington, NM |
160.5 |
183.0 |
14.0% |
|
|
|||
|
|
|||
|
Ft. Wayne, IN |
104.1 |
101.6 |
-2.4% |
|
|
|||
|
Gainesville, FL |
197.7 |
211.5 |
7.0% |
|
|
|||
|
Gary-Hammond, IN |
128.4 |
123.2 |
-4.0% |
|
|
|||
|
Glens Falls, NY |
170.5 |
174.4 |
2.3% |
|
|
|||
|
Grand Rapids, MI |
135.1 |
129.5 |
-4.1% |
|
|
|||
|
Green Bay, WI |
150.1 |
145.6 |
-3.0% |
|
|
|||
|
Greensboro-High Point, NC |
150.0 |
150.2 |
0.1% |
|
|
|||
|
Greenville, SC |
152.2 |
150.0 |
-1.4% |
|
|
|||
|
Gulfport-Biloxi, MS |
147.0 |
152.0 |
3.4% |
|
|
|||
|
Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV |
222.1 |
213.9 |
-3.7% |
|
|
|||
|
Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT |
253.8 |
253.9 |
0.0% |
|
|
|||
|
Honolulu, HI |
620.0 |
620.0 |
Unch |
|
|
|||
|
Houston-Baytown-Sugar Land, TX |
146.3 |
148.6 |
1.6% |
|
|
|||
|
Indianapolis, IN |
122.0 |
117.1 |
-4.0% |
|
|
|||
|
Jackson, MS |
142.5 |
145.3 |
2.0% |
|
|
|||
|
Jacksonville, FL |
182.2 |
180.4 |
-1.0% |
|
|
|||
|
Kalamazoo-Portage, MI |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
|
|
|||
|
Kankakee-Bradley, IL |
123.6 |
125.7 |
1.7% |
|
|
|||
|
Kansas City, MO-KS |
156.5 |
153.1 |
-2.2% |
|
|
|||
|
Kennewick-Richland-Pasco, WA |
157.7 |
151.2 |
-4.1% |
|
|
|||
|
Kingston, NY |
260.0 |
243.2 |
-6.5% |
|
|
|||
|
Knoxville, TN |
148.8 |
153.6 |
3.2% |
|
|
|||
|
Lansing-E.Lansing, MI |
139.1 |
135.0 |
-2.9% |
|
|
|||
|
Las Vegas-Paradise, NV |
315.9 |
313.5 |
-0.8% |
|
|
|||
|
Lexington-Fayette,KY |
150.7 |
146.3 |
-2.9% |
|
|
|||
|
Lincoln, NE |
N/A |
137.7 |
N/A |
|
|
|||
|
Little Rock-N. Little Rock, AR |
125.9 |
125.9 |
Unch |
|
|
|||
|
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, CA |
568.4 |
586.5 |
3.2% |
|
|
|||
|
Louisville, KY-IN |
134.6 |
137.6 |
2.2% |
|
|
|||
|
Madison, WI |
224.6 |
225.4 |
0.4% |
|
|
|||
|
Memphis, TN-MS-AR |
144.2 |
141.9 |
-1.6% |
|
|
|||
|
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Miami Beach, FL |
391.2 |
366.8 |
-6.2% |
|
|
|||
|
Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, WI |
214.9 |
210.9 |
-1.9% |
|
|
|||
|
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI |
230.5 |
228.3 |
-1.0% |
|
|
|||
|
Mobile, AL |
133.7 |
137.2 |
2.6% |
|
|
|||
|
Montgomery, AL |
136.3 |
139.6 |
2.4% |
|
|
|||
|
Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro, TN |
170.9 |
N/A |
N/A |
|
|
|||
|
New Haven-Milford, CT |
279.7 |
278.8 |
-0.3% |
|
|
|||
|
New Orleans-Metairie-Kenner, LA |
178.7 |
162.1 |
-9.3% |
|
|
|||
|
New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, NY-NJ-PA |
454.1 |
464.4 |
2.3% |
|
|
|||
|
New York-Wayne-White Plains, NY-NJ |
518.1 |
498.4 |
-3.8% |
|
|
|||
|
NY: Edison, NJ |
383.0 |
366.9 |
-4.2% |
|
|
|||
|
NY: Nassau-Suffolk, NY |
472.4 |
473.7 |
0.3% |
|
|
|||
|
NY: Newark-Union, NJ-PA |
413.9 |
426.6 |
3.1% |
|
|
|||
|
Norwich-New London, CT |
262.1 |
257.9 |
-1.6% |
|
|
|||
|
Ocala, FL |
161.1 |
170.7 |
6.0% |
|
|
|||
|
Oklahoma City, OK |
115.5 |
123.7 |
7.1% |
|
|
|||
|
Omaha, NE-IA |
137.7 |
136.2 |
-1.1% |
|
|
|||
|
Orlando, FL |
261.8 |
272.1 |
3.9% |
|
|
|||
|
Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL |
209.5 |
173.9 |
-17.0% |
|
|
|||
|
Pensacola-Ferry Pass-Brent, FL |
168.2 |
161.4 |
-4.0% |
|
|
|||
|
Peoria, IL |
112.7 |
108.9 |
-3.4% |
|
|
|||
|
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD |
215.1 |
222.3 |
3.3% |
|
|
|||
|
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ |
268.4 |
262.2 |
-2.3% |
|
|
|||
|
Pittsburgh, PA |
114.3 |
112.2 |
-1.8% |
|
|
|||
|
Pittsfield, MA |
210.7 |
220.6 |
4.7% |
|
|
|||
|
Portland-South Portland-Biddeford, ME |
245.7 |
245.2 |
-0.2% |
|
|
|||
|
Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton, OR-WA |
256.6 |
285.4 |
11.2% |
|
|
|||
|
Providence-New Bedford-Fall River, RI-MA |
294.4 |
291.3 |
-1.1% |
|
|
|||
|
Raleigh-Cary, NC |
197.7 |
226.3 |
14.5% |
|
|
|||
|
Reading, PA |
143.2 |
143.2 |
Unch |
|
|
|||
|
Reno-Sparks, NV |
365.5 |
332.9 |
-8.9% |
|
|
|||
|
Richmond, VA |
210.3 |
229.4 |
9.1% |
|
|
|||
|
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA |
389.9 |
406.4 |
4.2% |
|
|
|||
|
Rochester, NY |
112.8 |
111.4 |
-1.2% |
|
|
|||
|
Rockford, IL |
114.9 |
121.5 |
5.7% |
|
|
|||
|
Sacramento–Arden-Arcade–Roseville, CA |
380.9 |
365.1 |
-4.1% |
|
|
|||
|
Saginaw-Saginaw Township North, MI |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
|
|
|||
|
Saint Louis, MO-IL |
138.8 |
139.5 |
0.5% |
|
|
|||
|
Salem, OR |
194.1 |
223.1 |
14.9% |
|
|
|||
|
Salt Lake City, UT |
182.3 |
223.6 |
22.7% |
|
|
|||
|
San Antonio, TX |
137.8 |
140.6 |
2.0% |
|
|
|||
|
San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, CA |
607.4 |
579.8 |
-4.5% |
|
|
|||
|
San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA |
718.7 |
733.4 |
2.0% |
|
|
|||
|
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA |
740.0 |
760.0 |
2.7% |
|
|
|||
|
Sarasota-Bradenton-Venice, FL |
367.4 |
301.3 |
-18.0% |
|
|
|||
|
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA |
335.0 |
372.9 |
11.3% |
|
|
|||
|
Shreveport-Bossier City, LA |
125.6 |
131.7 |
4.9% |
|
|
|||
|
Sioux Falls, SD |
136.4 |
133.7 |
-2.0% |
|
|
|||
|
South Bend-Mishawaka, IN |
89.9 |
89.8 |
-0.1% |
|
|
|||
|
Spartanburg, SC |
125.6 |
121.3 |
-3.4% |
|
|
|||
|
Spokane, WA |
168.6 |
189.2 |
12.2% |
|
|
|||
|
Springfield, IL |
105.9 |
94.9 |
-10.4% |
|
|
|||
|
Springfield, MA |
198.6 |
199.4 |
0.4% |
|
|
|||
|
Springfield, MO |
120.8 |
119.4 |
-1.2% |
|
|
|||
|
Syracuse, NY |
112.7 |
115.4 |
2.4% |
|
|
|||
|
Tallahassee, FL |
176.4 |
185.3 |
5.0% |
|
|
|||
|
Tampa-St.Petersburg-Clearwater, FL |
223.0 |
229.7 |
3.0% |
|
|
|||
|
Toledo, OH |
112.7 |
104.8 |
-7.0% |
|
|
|||
|
Topeka, KS |
105.2 |
101.1 |
-3.9% |
|
|
|||
|
Trenton-Ewing, NJ |
243.1 |
289.0 |
18.9% |
|
|
|||
|
Tucson, AZ |
246.2 |
239.4 |
-2.8% |
|
|
|||
|
Tulsa, OK |
120.0 |
128.5 |
7.1% |
|
|
|||
|
Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, VA-NC |
220.5 |
235.2 |
6.7% |
|
|
|||
|
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV |
432.9 |
421.6 |
-2.6% |
|
|
|||
|
Waterloo/Cedar Falls, IA |
106.3 |
102.9 |
-3.2% |
|
|
|||
|
Wichita, KS |
108.7 |
113.4 |
4.3% |
|
|
|||
|
Worcester, MA |
289.5 |
274.7 |
-5.1% |
|
|
|||
|
Yakima, WA |
135.2 |
144.6 |
7.0% |
|
|
|||
|
Youngstown-Warren-Boardman, OH-PA |
86.7 |
80.0 |
-7.7% |
|
|
|||
|
U.S. |
225.3 |
219.3 |
-2.7% |
|
|
|||
|
Northeast |
281.7 |
274.6 |
-2.5% |
|
|
|||
|
Midwest |
168.9 |
161.8 |
-4.2% |
|
|
|||
|
South |
188.7 |
181.7 |
-3.7% |
|
|
|||
|
West |
353.6 |
355.1 |
0.4% |
|
|
|||
|
NA=not available |
|||
