Dive summary:

• A survey in August of home builders came back with 59% saying that a shortage of lots is keeping them from being able to erect the homes they want to build.
• The builders also told the National Association of Homes Builders survey that lots in the most desirable places are the ones hardest to find, the association said.
• The respondents saying a lot shortage was getting in the way of business were up from 43% last September, and the 59% – 39% saying the supply of lots is low and 29% saying it is very low – was the highest level since the survey began in 1997.

From the article:

The shortage of buildable lots has emerged against the backdrop of a housing recovery that is still modest by historical standards. To this point, housing starts have recovered from a low of 550,000 in 2009 to an annual rate of just fewer than 900,000 in the Census Bureau’s latest release. ...