Each month, Zonda surveys builders across the country to gauge sentiment around the housing market. This survey is intended to supplement Zonda’s proprietary database by asking builders more qualitative questions.
The anonymous survey covers everything from consumer sentiment to broader macroeconomic topics like tariffs and immigration. Results are tracked over time and analyzed geographically to capture real-time shifts in builder and consumer confidence.
Below are three key takeaways from the August responses:
- A 78%/22% split.
- A huge jump in labor market disruptions.
- Buyer hesitation, housing affordability, and policy uncertainty are among the top things to watch.
A 78%/22% Split.
The July housing market was notably slow, even after accounting for normal seasonal patterns, and August appears to have followed a similar trend, with 78% of builders reporting demand was slower than expected during the month.
When asked to describe the market, builders most frequently used words like slow (“Consumers appear to be back on the sidelines due to economic concerns.”), competitive (“Prospects are taking a lot of time to make decisions due to more available inventory.”), and challenging (“Painfully slow and causing concerns.”).
The insights in this article were taken from a more detailed monthly review of the survey’s findings published in Zonda’s National Outlook.
