U.S. new housing demand remains steady

Article Excerpt

The U.S. housing and homebuilding markets dropped in 2020 on fears that a COVID-induced catastrophe would disrupted the U.S. economy. The recovery, however, came quickly in 2021, aided by decades-low mortgage rates, limited housing supply, and a strong job market. The recovery was nonetheless shortlived as the market slowed in 2022 on higher mortgage rates and weaker consumer confidence because of inflation. However, it began to recover in 2023—including a surge at the end the year. That jump was due to pent-up demand. Many people who own a home right now refuse to sell because they have a low-rate mortgage and don’t want to reset it at a higher rate. As a result, new home sales have climbed even as existing home sales have slumped to multi-decade lows. Demand for new homes keeps rising During the financial crisis of 2008 to 2009, sales of new single-family homes in the U.S. declined sharply. But sales have been on a steady upward trend since then despite a..