According to the National Association of Home Builders' 55+ housing market index for single-family homes, sentiment dropped to 14, signaling homebuilders are pessimistic about the mature-market real estate sector.
"The normal course of purchasing a new home in anticipation of or upon entering retirement has been interrupted by the fall in Baby Boomers' house values and reduction in their home equilty," said David Crowe, NAHB's chief economist. Even those with the ability to buy a new home are finding a limited selection, as builders cannot get loans to build homes."
The 55+ single-family housing market index surveys homebuilder sentiment. A number greater than 50 is indicative of homebuilders being confident about the housing market. All the indicators - present sales, expected sales and traffic of prospective buyers - were either in the 20s or teens.
Sentiment has generally been low among homebuilders recently. Last month, another NAHB survey found most homebuilders thought the 2011 construction market would contract.
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