U.S. builder confidence for new single-family homes increased one point in January to 47, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI). The HMI component that tracks current sales was 51, growing three points from December, while the measurement of sales expectations for the next six months decreased six points to 60 in January. The prospective buyer traffic component was 33, climbing two points from December.
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