Click here to view or print the entire new home monthly report compliments of the ACRE Corporate Cabinet. Join the Center mailing list HERE.

Demand: Alabama new home sales totaling 272 units in October decreased 12.3 percent from the same period last year. As anticipated taking into account seasonal buying patterns, October new homes sales were 28 percent below the prior month. Average days on market in October of 102 represent a 17.6 percent decrease from last October, which is encouraging news.

New construction sales totaled 272 units during October, a 12.3 percent decrease over last year.

Supply: Months of new home supply in October was 6.7 months; compared to 5.6 months in October 2014 and 4.7 months in September 2015. Statewide new construction inventory is about 4 percent above last October and 2.3 percent above last month.

Pricing: Alabama metro markets’ median new home sales price during October was $227,496, an increase of 0.9 percent from last October and a decrease of 7.1 percent from September.

New Home Pipeline: October statewide housing starts were down 6.1 percent from 2014 and 6.2 percent below the prior month. Statewide building permits in October were down 8.7 percent from October 2014 and 3.3 percent below last month.

Residential Construction Employment: According to the Alabama Department of Industrial Relations, statewide related residential construction employment in October increased 3.6 percent (+3,600 jobs) to 85,200 from the same period last year but was down slightly, 0.2 percent, from last month. This represents the 15th straight month of positive year-over-year comparisons associated with construction employment.

Local Results :Eight of the 27 associations (29 percent – down from 44 percent in September 2015) reported building permit gains from the prior month while 11 associations (40 percent – down from 44 percent in September 2015) experienced gains in housing starts. Ten associations (37 percent – same as last month) experienced an increase from their October 2014 monthly housing starts.

Industry Perspective: From David Crowe, NAHB chief economist: “With October’s three-point uptick, builder confidence has been holding steady or increasing for five straight months. This upward momentum shows that our industry is strengthening at a gradual but consistent pace. With firm job creation, economic growth and the release of pent-up demand, we expect housing to keep moving forward as we start to close out 2015.”

The ACRE New Construction Monthly Report is work product stemming from our partnership with the Home Builder’s Association of Alabama Foundation. The Alabama Center for Real Estate‘s core purpose is to advance the real estate industry in Alabama by providing relevant resources in the areas of research, education and outreach. Join the Center mailing list HERE.