Builders are feeling less confident about their business prospects than they were a month ago, the National Association of Home Builders reports.
The NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index dropped two points in October to 55 from September’s revised index of 57. October’s number reflected a consistent two-point drop in all three areas the index tracks: current sales, expected future sales, and traffic.
The survey was taken in the first 10 days of October as Washington grappled with a congressional showdown over the national debt limit and the future of the Affordable Care Act.
The building industry continues to be hindered by higher costs for building materials, building lots, and labor as well as low real-estate appraisals, NAHB says, and homebuyers are still having trouble getting mortgages.