April was a good month for housing.

Contracts for new home sales as reported by the Census Bureau and HUD were up 6.8% over March, at a 517,000 seasonally adjusted annual rate. And these gains are significant relative to last year’s numbers: The average pace of new home sales for the first quarter of 2015 (514,000) was 26% higher than the April 2014 rate of 410,000.

New home inventories grew slightly to 205,000, which is still well below the 317,000 50-year average but up 43% from the cycle low set in August 2012. New home prices were 8.3% higher in April, compared to a year ago, in part due to an industry shift to move-up buyers.

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking measure of future existing home sales, was up 14% in April on a year-over-year basis and reached a nine-year high. This positive result contrasted with a 3.3% decline for the NAR estimate of April’s existing home sales, which may be down on lower inventory levels. Existing home sales should rise in the months ahead given improving job numbers and the increase in the pending home sales measure.

First-quarter data suggest improvements for a persistent headwind for residential construction growth: availability of acquisition, development and construction (AD&C) loans. NAHB analysis of FDIC data indicated that the stock of AD&C loans grew by 4.8% during the first quarter, with a year-over-year increase of 17%. NAHB survey data also indicate ongoing easing conditions for AD&C funds, particularly for constructions loans.

However, a lending gap remains, as evidenced by the fact that the stock of AD&C loans remains more than 73% lower than the first-quarter 2008 measure. Among other factors, tight credit for development purposes has produced a shortage of building lots. A May 2015 NAHB industry survey found that 62% of builders reported that the supply of lots in their areas was low or very low, up from a 43% response in September 2012. Shortages are most acute among desirable “A” location lots.

Nonetheless, home building is growing. April Census construction spending data revealed that single-family construction spending (estimates of completed construction value) was up 9% on a year-over-year basis, while multifamily construction spending was almost 25% higher. The growth for multifamily production is mirrored by theNAHB Multifamily Production Index, which has been in positive territory for 13 consecutive quarters.

For additional analysis regarding the latest housing news, be sure to check out the most recent posts from NAHB’s economics blog Eye on Housing.

Latest Posts

Builders and developers continue to report easing credit conditions for acquisition, development, and construction (AD&C) loans, according to NAHB’s survey on AD&C financing. Posted June 3.

NAHB analysis of Census residential construction spending data finds that the improved on both a monthly and year-over-year basis for April. Posted June 1.

According to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s latest Household Debt and Credit Report, total household debt outstanding rose by $24 billion, 0.2%, between the fourth quarter of 2014 and the first quarter of 2015. Posted June 1.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency and the Standard and Poor’s/Case-Shiller recently released the Home Price Index for March. Posted June 1.

The Bureau of Economic Analysis revised real GDP growth down to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of -0.7% in the first quarter of 2015 from an initial estimate of +0.2%. Posted May 29.

Consumer plans to buy a new home remain elevated compared to prior years. Posted May 29.

The NAR Pending Home Sales Index increased for the fourth straight month in April to a level 14% above April 2014. Posted May 28.

The volume of residential AD&C loans outstanding expanded 4.8% during the first quarter of 2015, marking the 8th consecutive quarter of growth. Posted May 27.

In a May survey conducted by NAHB, 62% of builders reported that the overall supply of developed lots in their areas was low to very low, up 2% from May 2014, but up from 43% in September 2012. Posted May 27.

April new home sales reversed the one-month drop in March to an annualized level of 517,000 as reported by the Census Bureau and HUD. Posted May 26.

According to NAHB analysis of the most recent Census data of Starts and Completions by Purpose and Design, single-family attached starts totaled 14,000 for the first quarter of 2015, effectively unchanged from a year prior. Posted May 25.

The Consumer Price Index rose at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.2%, while the growth in real rents has slowed. Posted May 22.

According to first-quarter 2015 data from Census and NAHB analysis, the average per-unit square footage of multifamily housing construction starts was 1,238, setting a post-recession high. Posted May 22.

Single-family homes built-for-rent declined to approximately 2,000 starts for the first quarter of 2015, compared to about 4,000 at the start of 2014. Posted May 21.

Existing home sales declined 3.3% in April, despite the fact that almost half of April sales remained on the market less than one month. Posted May 21.