U.S. builder confidence for new single-family homes in February was 36, down one point from January, according to the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI). The HMI component gauging current sales conditions was unchanged from January at 41, while the measurement of sales expectations in the next six months dropped three points to 46 in February. The component measuring prospective buyer traffic slipped two points from January to 22.
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