By Breitbart News Network | Created at 2026-10-19 19:41:30 | Updated at 2026-10-19 23:36:54
6 hours ago
U.S. homebuilder confidence fell more than expected in October to its lowest level in 14 years, as higher mortgage rates deterred buyers and builders increasingly cut prices to make sales.
The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index dropped three points to 29, the lowest reading since June 2012, the trade group said Monday. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg and The Wall Street Journal had expected a reading of 31.
Readings below 50 indicate that more builders view conditions as poor than good. The index measures confidence in the market for newly built single-family homes.
All three components declined. The gauge of current sales fell two points to 33, also its lowest since 2012. Expectations for sales over the next six months dropped five points to 32, the weakest reading since November 2022.
Prospective buyer traffic fell five points to 18. That was the lowest since April 2012, excluding the pandemic’s onset in April 2020.
NAHB Chairman Bill Owens said mortgage rates had climbed well above seven percent in recent weeks, while higher gasoline prices and inflation had further weakened buyer traffic. Builders also face higher costs for construction loans, building materials and diesel, he said.
“Housing remains squeezed by supply-side constraints and significant affordability challenges,” NAHB Chief Economist Robert Dietz said.
Builders responded to difficult selling conditions with widespread discounts. Forty-three percent reported cutting prices in October, the highest share during the 2020–2026 period. The average reduction remained six percent for the seventh consecutive month.
Sixty-five percent of builders used sales incentives, marking the 19th consecutive month that at least 60 percent had done so.
A separate September NAHB survey, released last week, found builders’ labor costs had risen a median 4.2 percent over the previous year. That report also described Florida contractors raising pay and offering recruiting bonuses as available crews became harder to find.
Owens credited the Trump administration’s regulatory reform efforts with helping ease some builders’ cost pressures.
