Economics
Homebuilder Confidence in U.S. Increases to Fresh Record High
- Record-low mortgage rates drive gauges of sales, outlook
- Shortages of labor, building materials represent risks
Photographer: Ty Wright/Bloomberg
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U.S. homebuilder confidence advanced in October to a fresh all-time high as record-low interest rates continued to fuel sales and the demand outlook.
A gauge of builder sentiment climbed to 85, the highest in records back to 1985, from 83 a month earlier, according to the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Market Index released Monday. The October reading was stronger than the median forecast of 83 in a Bloomberg survey of economists, and marked the sixth straight month builder sentiment has exceeded the consensus estimate.