The number of Single family houses being built is way down.
This is a quote from an article BY: JANN SWANSON
“Despite a strong growth in residential construction in 2013 it was the sixth consecutive year that constructions starts fell short of one million, finishing the year at 925,000. This is unprecedented in records dating back to 1959 where the historical average is 1.46 million.
Single family starts were up 15 percent from 2012 to 2013 but remain depressed. The 618,000 total is a record low compared to years prior to 2008. Also, the 18 percent increase in 2013 was considerably lower than the 24 percent gain in 2011-12 and the cool down continued into the first quarter of this year, with starts down 3 percent from the same period in 2013.
Multifamily construction had its third consecutive year of solid growth, up 62,000 units or 25 percent to 307,000 units. That brought multifamily starts back to the 2000s average, still well below levels in the 70s and 80s. At the same time renter household growth is far above that in the two earlier decades, so overbuilding, at least nationally, is not a concern.
Inventory weaknesses arise from several conditions; an unwillingness of many buyers to accept today’s prices given their relationship to the market peak; expiration of the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act at the end of 2013 created a disincentive for under-water homeowners to pursue a short sale, and owners who have refinanced would have to pay higher interest rates for a new home. Moreover, since the housing crisis, millions of formerly owner-occupied units have been converted to rentals. At last measure, approximately 1.9 million homes switched on net from the owner to the rental stock between 2009 and 2011. Longer-term factors are also at play, including the aging of the population and the consequent decline in the number of households that move each year. The tight inventories feed on themselves, limiting options for trade-up buyers and keeping them from selling as well.
Yet another reason for the shortage of inventory is that millions of homes have been taken off the market and are sitting empty. The Census Bureau’s Housing Vacancy Survey says over 7 million homes were held off the market during the downturn and the number is only now beginning to level off. The Center says if the vacant/held-off-market share of the housing stock (currently 5.6 percent) were the same as in 2001 (4.5 percent), an additional 1.4 million homes would now be available for sale or rent.””
That means is that inventory still tight. Multi- family construction is booming so conditions for single family development will remain low for a while.,,,,pr
