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Two monthly housing market indicators have been released so far this week, both relating broadly to home construction and showing a continued slowing of the housing sector and a related loss of builder confidence. The U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development have published their joint report on new residential construction for August 2006. The survey covers the number of building permits, housing starts, and housing completions throughout the country and it reported a further retreat in each category from the previous month and double digit drops in two of the three categories since the same month in 2005.
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That's why, says Mayor Al Richards, the Milwaukee suburb is experimenting with a program that waives construction permit fees. Richards and others say it's an incentive for homeowners to stay in the area and add-on to their homes when they decide they need more room. City Administrator Ralph Voltner says about one-third of the city's homes are between 700 and 900 square feet. So while there are plenty of ritzy condos and townhomes, he says there's room to grow. And that's why he made the proposal, which was approved in August. To qualify for the fee waivers, construction costs must be at least half of the assessed value of the home. Savings can be big. For example, the savings from waiving costs for plumbing, electrical, heating and A-C and building can be from one-thousand to 25-hundred dollars.
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