U.S. builder confidence for new single-family homes in March decreased for the third straight month, falling two points from February to 79, according to the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI). The HMI component gauging current sales conditions dropped three points to 86 and the measurement of sales expectations in the next six months shrunk 10 points to 70 in March. The component measuring prospective buyer traffic increased two points from February to 67.
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
