U.S. Housing Market Index Inches Up To Nearly Ten-Year High In August

(RTTNews) - Suggesting single-family housing is making slow but steady progress, the National Association of Home Builders released a report on Monday showing a modest improvement in homebuilder confidence in the month of August.

The report said the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index inched up to 61 in August from 60 in July, in line with economist estimates.

With the modest uptick, the housing market index reached its highest level since hitting a matching reading in November of 2005.

"Today's report is consistent with our forecast for a gradual strengthening of the single-family housing sector in 2015," said NAHB Chief Economist David Crowe.

He added, "Job and economic gains should keep the market moving forward at a modest pace throughout the rest of the year."

The increase by the housing market index in August reflected gains by two of the three components that make up the index.

The index measuring buyer traffic rose to 45 in August from 43 in July, while the component gauging current sales conditions ticked up to 66 from 65.

Meanwhile, the NAHB said the index charting sales expectations in the next six months held at 70 in August, unchanged from the previous month.

The Commerce Department is scheduled to release a separate report on new residential construction in the month of July on Tuesday.

Economists expect housing starts to rise to an annual rate of 1.180 million in July after jumping to a rate of 1.174 million in June.