Soaring building material costs, high demand and low inventory have added tens of thousands of dollars to the price of a new home and caused housing affordability to fall to its lowest level in nearly a decade during the second quarter of 2021.

Overall housing starts increased 6.3 percent in June to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.64 million units.

Chuck Fowke, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders issued a statement after the White House meeting to discuss home building material supply chain issues.

The Construction Industry Safety Coalition issued a statement on the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's decision to apply an Emergency Temporary Standard on COVID-19 only to the healthcare industry. 

The effect of high lumber prices on low- and moderate-income families is a top concern of NAHB and the Biden administration, noted NAHB's Immediate Past Chairman Greg Ugalde.

The Multifamily Production Index (MPI) increased eight points to 51 compared to the previous quarter.

Overall housing starts decreased 9.5 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.57 million units.

"Builder confidence in the market remains strong due to a lack of resale inventory, low mortgage interest rates and a growing demographic of prospective home buyers," said NAHB chairman Chuck Fowke.

Mental Health Action Day is an open-source movement to drive culture from mental health awareness to mental health action.  

Regulations imposed by all levels of government account for $93,870, or 23.8 percent of the current average sales price ($397,300) of a new single-family home.