Homebuilder Confidence Slides to 16-Year Low

Homebuilder Confidence Slides to 16-Year Low

U.S. homebuilder sentiment slid in July to its lowest since January 1991 as fallout from the housing slump and subprime mortgage crisis caused a glut of new homes, the National Association of Home Builders said recently.

Homebuilders are struggling to unload excess inventories left to them as speculators abandon contracts and buyers find it harder to obtain mortgages. Soaring delinquencies on the riskiest loans have forced lenders to boost requirements for many borrowers, locking out customers who might previously have qualified.

"The bottom line is that the single-family housing market is still in a correction process following the historic and unsustainable highs of the 2003-2005 period," NAHB Chief Economist David Seiders said in the statement.