News in end use


Residential Vacancies and Homeownership Statistics Released for Q4 2021

The national vacancy rates in Q4 2021 were 5.6% for rental housing and 0.9% for homeowner housing. The rental vacancy rate was -0.9 percentage points lower than the rate in Q4 2020 of 6.5% and not statistically different from the rate in the Q3 2021 of 5.8%. The homeowner vacancy rate of 0.9% was -0.1 percentage points lower than the rate in Q4 2020 of 1.0% and was the same as the rate in Q3 2021, 0.9%.

Construction Job Openings Post Year-Over-Year Gains

A closer look at the construction sector portion of the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS) Job Openings and Labor Turnover (JOLTS) Summary for December, with further analysis provided by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), reveals that construction labor market remains constricted and the number of job openings continues to rise year-over-year.

Job Openings and Labor Turnover Summary Released for December 2021

On Tuesday (2-1-22), the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics published the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Summary (JOLTS) for December 2021. According to the JOLTS report, as of the last day in December, the number of job openings was little changed at 10.9 million. The job opening rate was unchanged at 6.8%, and the number of job openings was little changed in all regions.

Newly Constructed Houses Make Up One-Third of All U.S. Homes Sales in December

According to a report released today (1-31-22) by Redfin, the Seattle-based, technology-powered real estate brokerage, more than one-third (34.1%) of U.S. single-family home sales in December were for new construction. This is the highest share on record and 8.7% above December 2020 reading of 25.4%. Newly built homes have taken up an increasing portion of U.S. housing inventory over the last 10 years, with a major acceleration in mid-2020 after the pandemic began.

Canadian Industrial Product Price Index Moves Higher in December on Softwood Lumber Gains

Statistics Canada (StatsCan) reported today (1-31-22) that prices of products manufactured in Canada, as measured by the Industrial Product Price Index (IPPI), rose 0.7% on a monthly basis in December and were up 16.1% year-over-year. Prices of raw materials purchased by manufacturers operating in Canada, as measured by the Raw Materials Price Index (RMPI), fell -2.9% month-over-month in December but increased 29.0% year-over-year.