U.S. builder confidence for new single-family homes in August decreased six points from July to 50, marking the first decline in seven months, according to the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI). The HMI component gauging current sales conditions dropped five points to 57, while the measurement of sales expectations in the next six months fell four points to 55 in August. The prospective buyer traffic component was 34, six points lower than July.
Derived from a monthly NAHB survey, the HMI gauges builder perceptions of current single-family home sales and sales expectations for the next six months. Scores from each component are then used to calculate a seasonally adjusted index where any number over 50 indicates that more builders view conditions as good rather than poor. See NAHB
