June 2022
New Home Sales Fall to Slowest Pace in Two Years
In a further sign of a housing slowdown, new home sales posted a double-digit percentage decline in April, falling to their weakest pace in two years, as rising mortgage interest rates and worsening affordability conditions continue to take a toll on the housing market. Sales of newly built, single-family homes in April fell 16.6% to a 591,000 seasonally adjusted annual rate from a downwardly revised reading in March, according to newly released data by HUD and the U.S. Census Bureau. New home sales are down 26.9% compared to April 2021. One year ago, 25% of new home sales were priced below $300,000, while in April that share fell to just 10%. A new home sale occurs when a sales contract is signed or a deposit is accepted. The home can be in any stage of construction: not yet started, under construction or completed. In addition to adjusting for seasonal effects, the April reading of 591,000 units is the number of homes that would sell if this pace continued for the next 12 months. In an indication that builders will be slowing construction, new single-family home inventory jumped to a 9 months’ supply, up 40% over last year, with 444,000 available for sale. However, just 38,000 of those are completed and ready to occupy. The median sales price rose to $450,600 in April from $435,000 in March and is up more than 19% compared to a year ago, due primarily to higher development costs, including materials.
CALENDAR OF EVENTS June 7 General Membership Meeting 6:30 pm Program by: CopyCat Printing Co. Location CopyCat Printing Co. June 24 NSHBA Golf Outing Awarii Dunes Kearney Registration July 5 General Membership Meeting 6:30 pm Program by: Island Indoor Climate & Rod Keesee (Virtually Possible) Location Truss Craft August 5 Jim Roth Memorial Golf Tournament Registration
CNHBA Board of Directors President Greg Geis Vice President Dar Barnes Past President Barry Obermiller Directors Todd Enck Chris Meister Justin Oseka Dana Jelinek Tim Uhrich Mark Rainforth
IN THIS EDITION CNHBA BOARD OF DIRECTORS p.2 CALENDAR OF EVENTS p.2 NEWS ACROSS THE NATION p.3-5 THANK YOU p. 6 STUDENT SCHOLARSHIP INFO p.7 NSHBA GOLF OUTING p. 8 JIM ROTH MEMORIAL GOLF TOURNAMENT p. 9
DHS, DOL Announce Additional H-2B Visas The Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Labor in May announced the avail- ability of an additional 35,000 H-2B temporary non- agricultural worker visas during the second half of fiscal year 2022. These visas are for U.S. employers seeking to employ additional workers through Sept. 30, 2022. H-2B visas allow employers to hire foreign workers who come temporarily to the United States and perform temporary non-agricultural services or labor, including construction work.
Insurance Needs Evolve As Climate Risks Increase A growing number of homes and communities throughout the country are at risk as wildfires, floods, and other natural disasters continue to set records. As a result of these expanding risks, many insurance companies are providing fewer options, drastically increasing premiums or dropping out of certain markets. Resolving these insurance challenges is part of NAHB’s broader support for a comprehensive approach to addressing natural disasters and their effects on the entire housing stock of the United States. Rising Home Prices Keep Buyers on the Sidelines NAHB’s latest Housing Trends Report revealed that the majority (67%) of buyers who were actively house hunting in the first quarter of 2022 have spent at least three months searching for a home without success. And the most common reason these long-term searchers cite for not having bought is their inability to find an affordable home (48%). Other top reasons include their inability to find a desirable neighborhood (34%), followed by the inability to find a home with desirable features (31%), and being outbid by other buyers (29%).
Materials Prices Up 19% Year-over-Year The prices of goods used in residential construction ex-energy (not seasonally adjusted) climbed 0.5% in April, following upwardly revised increases of 1.9% and 2.4% in March and February, respectively, according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) report released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Building materials prices are up 19.2% year-over- year and 35.6% since the start of the pandemic. NAHB is pushing policymakers to negotiate with Canada on a long-term softwood lumber deal and to allow more timber harvesting from U.S. public lands.
Administration Announces Housing Plan The Biden administration on May 16 released what it calls a "Housing Supply Action Plan" to ease high housing costs by increasing the supply of quality housing throughout the nation over the next five years. NAHB sees the plan as a good start, but believes it does not go far enough to resolve the many underlying challenges facing the home building industry, including skyrocketing costs for lumber and other building materials.
Home Builders Must Prepare for New HVAC Standard
Iowa Career Event Draws 5,000 Build My Future, a hands-on career exploration day held in April on the Iowa State Fairgrounds, drew more than 5,000 students from over 140 high schools across the state. Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds attended and met with students, parents and educators. The Build My Future event was hosted by Iowa Skilled Trades, a non-profit industry group dedicated to bringing initiatives, education and aware- ness of the skilled trades in the state. New to the event this year was a mobile app option for students to share their information with event partners, many of them local HBA members. More than 3,000 students opted to share their information once they arrived at the event.
On Jan. 1, 2023, new minimum efficiency standards for air conditioners and heat pumps will go into effect across the country. Federal standards for equipment efficiencies are implemented by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) in accordance with the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA) of 1975. This is the first time since 2015 DOE is updating air conditioner and heat pump efficiency standards. All new units will be required to meet the updated standards. Home builders and HVAC contractors should be getting ready for the transition as equipment meeting older standards will be phased out. For the Southeast and Southwest regions (orange and blue areas on map), the Jan. 1, 2023, deadline will also apply to the installation of air conditioning systems at the building. The installation deadline applies only to AC units (not to heat pumps and not to other specialty systems), and does not apply to the North region.
Multifamily Confidence Declines Confidence in the market for new multi- family housing turned downward in the first quarter of 2022, according to results from the Multifamily Market Survey (MMS) released today by NAHB. The MMS produces two separate indices. The Multifamily Production Index (MPI) decreased six points to 48 compared to the previous quarter, dipping below the break-even mark of 50 for the first time in three quarters. The Multifamily Occupancy Index (MOI) inched down one point to 68. The MPI measures builder and developer sentiment about current production condi- tions in the apartment and condo market on a scale of 0 to 100. The MOI measures the multifamily housing industry’s perception of occupancies in existing apartments.
NAHB members and Construction, Codes & Standards staff successfully argued for decent, safe and affordable housing during the first round of the International Code Council’s (ICC) code development cycle during recent meetings in Rochester, N.Y. These meetings addressed ICC’s Group B cycle, which includes the key International Residential Code (IRC) provisions related to structural design, fire safety and egress, as well as the International Existing Building Code (IEBC) and structural provisions of the International Building Code (IBC). The four ICC code development committees considered some 800 code change proposals over nine days. The committees supported NAHB's position on 90% of the proposals for the IRC and 79% of the proposals overall. Major wins included: Adding U.S. Department of Agriculture textural soil classifications as an option for identifying soil types, in lieu of obtaining a geotechnical investigation. Restoring the ability to use construction-grade 6 mil polyethylene for vapor retarders under slabs-on-ground instead of costly proprietary products. Defeating a proposal to require all dwellings in tornado-prone areas be provided with an ICC 500-compliant storm shelter. Defeating a proposal to require that all trusses have fully sheathed top and bottom chords or an engineered bracing design. There were some proposals that NAHB members opposed that did get through — most notably, a set of proposals to comprehensively revise the duties of the building official, including how they review and approve alternate means and methods. ICC is accepting public comments on the committee hearing results through June 20. All submitted public comments will be heard at the ICC Group B Public Comment Hearings to be held Sept. 14-21 in Louisville, Kentucky.
NAHB Advances Builder Perspective at ICC Code Hearings
5 Reasons We Need Your Subs to Join HBA 1.Home Affordability– Your local HBA and the Nebraska State Home Builders Association fought to keep mandatory fire sprinkles out of the 2009 IRC for use in Nebraska. 2.We Have Your Back– NAHB offers free legal advice to all members. 3.Advocacy- NAHB sought White House action on soaring lumber prices and brought a lawsuit on behalf of its members against the CDC. NAHB won and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) overturned the eviction moratorium decision by the Centers for Disease and Control Prevention (CDC). Because of NAHB, the CDC eviction moratorium was set aside forall NAHB members and only NAHB members. 4.Strength in Numbers- More than 10,000 NAHB members from all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico sent a letter to President Biden on April 27 calling on the White House to take immediate action as the growing affordability crisis is pushing the housing market to an inflection point that threatens to derail the current housing and economic expansion. 5.Why Wouldn’t You Support the Industry that Supports You –without members, there is no Local Association. There is no State Association. There is no National Association. There is no VOICE speaking on your behalf. Our strength is in our numbers! Invite your sub-contractors to join now and support the industry that is desperately supporting them in these trying times. Strength in Numbers
CNHBA would like to thank Pat O'Neill with O'Neill Wood Resources for his presentation during the May General Membership Meeting at Truss Craft. Pat spoke to the CNHBA membership on the different services offered by O'Neill Wood Resources such as earthwork and landclearing for residential properties. Members, keep O'Neill Wood Resources in mind the next time you need any earthwork or landclearing done.
2022 CNHBA/Jim Roth Memorial Scholarship Sam Hartman Sam Hartman is a 2022 graduate of Grand Island Northwest and will be attending Southeast Community College-Milford in the fall. His general major will be Electrical Technology with a minor in Business. Sam is the son of Tom and Carlotta Hartman.
Future Dates at Heartland Events Center & Fonner Park • Grand Island 2022 | April 7-9 2026 | April 9-11 2023 | April 13 -15 2027 | April 8 -10 2024 | April 11 -13 2028 | April 6 – 8 2025 | April 10 – 12 2029 | April 5 – 7 2030 | April 4-6 The philosophy of the Championships is to reward students for excellence to involve industry in directly evaluating student performance and to keep training relevant to employers’ needs. The state championships showcase the best career and technical students in Nebraska. First-place winners compete in the SkillsUSA national championships in June. More than 1500 people including students, teachers, and business partners are expected to participate in the virtual event. Students work against the clock and each other, proving their expertise in over 100 contests in areas of: Architecture & Construction, Arts, Audio/Video Technology, Business Management & Administration, Education, Health Science, Public Safety, Hospitality & Tourism, Leadership, Manufacturing, Science, Technology, Engineering & Math, Information Technology, Transportation & more!