A Newly Completed Single-Family Home from Nova Homes of South Florida
Housing starts rose 3 percent last month to a seasonally adjusted rate of 1.3 million, the Commerce Department said this week. Almost all of those gains came from construction of single-family homes which rose 6.5 percent. Construction of apartment buildings fell 7.7 percent in February. More Americans are looking to purchase homes as the job market has improved, but the supply of properties for sale has bee relatively low even wit additional construction. The increase in construction points to greater sales this year even though mortgage rates have climbed from recent lows, making monthly housing payments higher and hurting affordability.
Housing starts are running 7.5 percent higher than they did during the first two months of 2016. Builders last year started the most new homes since 2007. Builders have been adding supply to the market, just not enough to address the tight inventory of existing homes that make up the bulk of the real estate market. The National Association of Realtors has reported that the number of existing homes on the market is near its lowest level since 1999, while the inventory of new homes on the market is near an eight-year high. Demand among homebuyers has been strong as the unemployment rate has dipped to a healthy 4.7 percent.
Nova Homes of South Florida is building custom homes in Naples, Marco Island, Golden Gate Estates, and throughout Southwest Florida. Homes are priced from the $200s to over $2 million. For more information call 239.307.6116 or visit www.novahomesbuilder.com.