Builder confidence remains steady in January

“However, uncertainties stemming from last month’s fiscal-cliff negotiations contributed to the pause in builder confidence and continuing discussions among policymakers related to spending cuts and the future of the mortgage interest deduction could put a damper on housing demand in the coming months,” he said. 

In addition to debt-ceiling talks, finding ways to pay for the remaining 10 months of a sequester and passing an omnibus spending package to cover spending for the rest of the fiscal year, the housing market faces other obstacles to a more robust recovery. 

{mosads}”Persistently tight mortgage credit conditions, difficulties in obtaining accurate appraisals and the ongoing stalemate in Washington over critical economic concerns continue to impede the housing recovery,” said David Crowe, NAHB’s chief economist. 

The index’s components were mixed in January. 

The component gauging current sales conditions remained unchanged at 51. 

Meanwhile, sentiment for sales expectations in the next six months fell one point to 49 and the component measuring the traffic of prospective buyers gained one point to 37.

The three-month moving average was up across all regions, with the Northeast and Midwest posting a two-point gain to 36 and 50, respectively. 

The South’s sentiment increased by three points to 49 while the West posted a four-point increase to 51.