New-Home Construction Dips in September, CBIA Announces
SACRAMENTO, CA – October 26, 2009 – (RealEstateRama) — New-home construction dipped again in September leading California homebuilders to strengthen the call for the Legislature to extend the successful homebuyer tax credit, the California Building Industry Association announced today.
“Since the discontinuation of the popular homebuyer tax credit, we have seen a significant drop in traffic these past few months which continues to drag down new-home construction, and in turn, job creation,” said Liz Snow, CBIA’s President and CEO. “We applaud the Senate for taking swift action in passing the tax credit extension, and we hope the Assembly follows suit.”
According to statistics compiled by the Construction Industry Research Board (CIRB), homebuilders pulled permits for 2,920 total housing units in September, down 1 percent from August. When compared to September of last year, production in 2009 was off by 36 percent. Permits for single-family homes totaled 2,150, down 2 percent from the previous month and down 12 percent from September 2008, while multifamily permits totaled 770, up 0.5 percent from August but down 63 percent from September of last year.
CIRB also announced that it is revising its forecast downward from 39,500 total units to just 37,700 total units in 2009, which would be by far the lowest total on record.
Snow noted the success of the tax credit program and said that rising unemployment and record-low construction numbers should send a signal to lawmakers that the program should be extended to bolster the housing industry and help put more people back to work.
“The tax credit program only lasted for four months due to its growing popularity, but we saw a significant increase in traffic during that time, which led to an increase in job-generating new-home construction,” said Snow. “Extending the program would help continue that positive momentum and would help reinvigorate the overall economy.”
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The California Building Industry Association is a statewide trade association representing thousands of homebuilders, remodelers, subcontractors, architects, engineers, designers, and other industry professionals. More information is available on the Association’s Web site, www.cbia.org.
The Construction Industry Research Board (CIRB) is a nonprofit research center established in 1974 to provide statistical information on the California building and construction industry. More information is available on the CIRB Web site, www.cirbdata.com.
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Media Contact:
Michael Castillo
Communications Manager
(916) 443-7933 ext. 346
mcastillo (at) cbia (dot) org
