The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) analyzed the median age of construction trade workers and individual trades. Across all sectors, the median age is 40, about two years lower than the overall construction industry workforce median age of 42. Of specific tradesworkers, plasterers and stucco masons reported the highest median age at 46, while solar photovoltaic installers reported the lowest at 27. Roofers, pipelayers and helpers in construction trades also had younger median ages. “This wide variation in the median age shows that the workforce aging is not uniform across…
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Single-family homes with private water and sewers increase
According to the National Association of Home Builders’ (NAHB) analysis of the Census Bureau’s Survey of Construction, approximately 10% of single-family homes started in 2025 had private wells and 17% relied on individual septic systems. This means that the share of new homes built with individual wells and septic systems increased in 2025 compared to the previous year. Nationally, most new homes were connected to public water systems. However, the remaining 10% used private wells, up one percentage point from the previous year. For sewage disposal, approximately 83% of new single-family…
Read MoreNAHB Associate Member revenues hits record $3.4 million
According to the 2025 National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) Member Census, associate members represent roughly two-thirds of the association’s total membership. 2025 marked the highest reported gross median revenue for NAHB associate members, at $3.4 million. This is a 12% increase from the year prior. Of the associate members, an estimated 42% are specialty trade contractors and subcontractors, while 12% are specialty professionals. Other associated members are often manufacturers, retailers, distributors, designers and architects. The report shows that the building industry heavily relies on trade contractors and subcontractors, despite…
Read MoreWhat is the average amount of bathrooms in new homes?
Last week, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) found that three-bedroom homes are the sweet spot for many builders across the United States. As for bathrooms, two full ones are the sweet spot in new homes, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of Construction. Homes with two full bathrooms continued to have the largest share of starts, followed by homes with three full bathrooms. Homes with four or more full bathrooms and homes with one bathroom or fewer made up under 10% of starts each. In 2025,…
Read MoreConstruction labor turnover at lowest level since 2000
According to the August release of the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS), construction jobs, especially in the housing market, declined month to month. Despite the slight decrease from 299,000 in July to 251,000 in August, the sector still remains stronger than a year ago. Quits in the sector remained stagnant at 2.2% while the layoff rate decreased to 1.3% in August. “The August JOLTS data indicate that both the demand for and supply of construction workers are decreasing,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu.…
Read MoreWhat is the most common amount of bedrooms in a new home?
Research from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) found that three-bedrooms is the sweet spot for many builders across the U.S. It remained the most popular configuration for over 20 consecutive years, with an estimated 46.5% share of the market. Closely behind are starts of four-bedroom homes at 31.7% of the market. While the starts for four-bedroom homes declined year over year, it still far outpaces homes with two bedrooms and five or more. The share of two-bedroom homes built rose only .01% year over year. However, smaller homes…
Read MoreFed raises rates for the first time in 3 years
On Sept. 16, 2026, the Federal Reserve increased its benchmark interest rate target range by 25 basis points to 3.75%–4.00%. This bump is not a shock, as many economists predicted the Fed would increase rates to combat rising inflation. However, this is the first rate hike since July 26, 2023. The unanimous decision to raise rates is the first real movement in nearly a year, holding steady throughout 2026 after the last cut in December 2025. Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh described this decision in the post-decision press conference as a…
Read MoreExisting home prices outpace new homes nationally
The headline may read, “Existing home prices outpace new homes nationally,” but the flip in recent years tells a different story regionally. Normally, new homes are more expensive than existing homes. However, since the pandemic, the housing market faced an unusual accumulation of headwinds: buyers who bought with prime low mortgage rates are not willing to give them up, supply chain pressures and tighter inventory. Now, new homebuilders are offering solutions such as building on smaller lots and incentives, among other solutions. Yet, this headline is only relevant to specific markets…
Read MoreAverage home build time falls to 8.8 months
New research from the Census Bureau’s Survey of Construction and analysis from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) show that the timeline from permit to completion of a new single-family home has decreased from the post-pandemic highs. Estimates in the most recent data from 2025 report that it now takes about 8.8 months on average from start to completion. While this is higher than the 2015 estimate of 7.2 months, the downward trend from the 2023 high of 10.1 months exhibits signs of cooling in supply chain holdups. The…
Read MoreConstruction jobs increase in 28 states
In 2026, seasonally adjusted construction employment rose in 28 states from June to July. According to the Associated General Contractors of America’s (AGC) analysis of BLS data from Aug. 21, Illinois added the most construction jobs during this time period, at 3,200 jobs. Ohio led closely behind with 3,000, followed by California with 2,900, Florida with 2,900 and Louisiana with 2,300. For the first seven months of 2026 combined, compared to January-July 2025, the value of construction starts, not seasonally adjusted, climbed 5.9% year-to-date (YTD). However, residential starts decreased 17%…
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