The latest National Association of Homebuilders market index remained unchanged in April, just shy of its record low for the third consecutive month.
The index, which comes from a survey of residential developers across the country, gauges builders’ perceptions of current conditions, interest from potential buyers, and expectations of sales in the next six months.
Driving the homebuilders’ lack of confidence: tighter lending standards, rising defaults, and fear about the market’s future – all of which have kept buyers on the sidelines.
Investors looking for guidance in the days ahead are well to look to the big homebuilders. While most investors generally are more adaptable to specific market conditions, the overall objective of the typical investor and the large homebuilder is the same: to sell houses.
Sand Castle, originally uploaded by crossmage.