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Builder confidence holds steady in January

January 20, 2011 - The nation's home builders say they have not yet seen the kind of strong moving activity necessary to raise their outlook for the housing market.

The National Association of Home Builders released its most recent gauge of builder confidence, showing members of the construction industry remain mostly pessimistic about the market's recovery. The NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index was at 16 for the third consecutive month in January, while two of its three subcomponents also remained unchanged. The other, which asks for builders' opinions on the traffic of prospective homebuyers, increased by just one point.

Bob Nielson, the trade group's chairman, said low levels of confidence are to be expected at a time when home sales are typically slow.

"As we emerge from the traditionally slow holiday season, builders continue to look for signs of improvement in the economy, home buyer demand and builder and consumer credit conditions," he said, adding that many in the industry are still being held back by issues of financing.

Difficulty accessing financing from banks is a problem that has plagued both homebuilders and buyers. A report last year from Zillow showed nearly a third of Americans have credit scores too low to qualify for a mortgage.
 

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