The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) reports builder confidence in the market for newly built, single-family homes fell one point to 56 in January. Rising home prices, historically low mortgage rates and significant pent-up demand will drive a continuing, gradual recovery in the year ahead,” said NAHB Chief Economist David Crowe. “However, the pace of the recovery could be stronger were it not for rising construction costs and inaccurate appraisals that are keeping some home sales from going through.” MHProNews has learned the HMI gauges builder perceptions of current single-family homes, sales expectations over the next six months, and traffic of prospective buyers. Regionally, the West rose four points to 63, the Northeast increased four points also, to 42, while the South remained steady at 56 and the Midwest dropped one to 58.

(Image credit: National Association of Home Builders)