Click here to view or print the entire new home monthly report compliments of the ACRE Corporate Cabinet.
Demand: New home sales totaled 309 units in February, a 32 percent increase from the same period last year. February sales of new homes were 19.3 percent above January sales. The average days on the market of 141 in February is a 5 percent decrease from February 2015.

New home sales in February are up 32 percent over the same period last year.

Supply: New home supply in February was 6 months. Statewide new construction inventory is approximately 2 percent above February 2015 but down 2 percent from January.

Pricing: Alabama’s metro median new home sales price during February was $235,895, a decrease of 4.2 percent from February 2015 but an increase of 5.6 percent from January 2016.

New Home Pipeline: February statewide housing starts were up 0.8 percent from 2015 and up 3 percent from January. Statewide building permits in February were up 9.8 percent from February 2015 and were up 2 percent from January 2016.

Residential Construction Employment: According to the Alabama Department of Industrial Relations, statewide related residential construction employment in February increased 0.6 percent (+600 jobs) to 79,700 from the same period last year and was down 0.1 percent from the previous month. This represents the 18th consecutive month of positive year-over-year comparisons associated with construction employment.

Local Results: Eleven of the 27 associations (40 percent) reported building permit gains from February 2015, while 11 associations (40 percent) experienced gains in housing starts.

Industry Perspective: According to Robert Dietz, NAHB chief economist, “Housing starts improved in February, increasing 5.2 percent to an annual pace of 1.178 million single-family and multifamily residences, based on government estimates. The increase was broad-based, with single-family starts up 7.2 percent over January to the fastest rate since November 2007. Total permits were down 3.1 percent on a monthly basis, but the decline was entirely in the multifamily sector.”

The ACRE New Construction Monthly Report stems from our partnership with the Home Builders Association of Alabama Foundation. The Alabama Center for Real Estate’s core purpose is to advance the industry by providing relevant research, education and outreach.