Dive Brief:
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Strict lending standards that make it tough to qualify for mortgages have cost builders thousands of new-home sales, the National Association of Home Builders reported Thursday.
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In fact, a new NAHB survey showed that 83% of builders have lost sales over the past six months because would-be homeowners couldn’t get home loans.
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More than half of single-family home builders in the survey described lending as "tight" or "very tight." Another 11% said it’s "somewhat easy" to qualify for a mortgage, but none called it “very easy.”
Dive Insight:
The average builder lost 9.7% of sales to tight lending practices. Industry-wide, that’s 18,700 lost homes, the report notes. NAHB Chief Economist David Crowe’s reaction: “There is no denying that tight credit conditions are hindering a full, healthy housing recovery.”