NBN Online for the week of June 30, 2008

California’s Housing Market Finds Itself in Dire Straits

While the underlying demographics for housing remain strong in California and are expected to gain even greater strength as its population continues to grow, the immediate outlook is grim and the industry remains in dire straits, representatives from the California Building Industry Association (CBIA) told the media at a June 25 news conference in San Francisco during the annual PCBC conference and tradeshow.

The state’s home building industry will languish well into next year, with some areas performing noticeably better than others, and the marketplace could sustain even more damage if lawmakers fail to move forward with stimulus legislation aimed at propping up the economy by stabilizing housing conditions.

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Nation's Building News Will Not Be Published July 7

Nation's Building News will not be published on July 7. Regular weekly publication will resume July 14.

Happy Fourth of July.

Sen. Ensign Stalls Consideration of Housing Bill

With the Senate poised to pass badly needed housing stimulus legislation, Sen. John Ensign (R-Nev.) abruptly stopped the bill in its tracks when he insisted on voting on an amendment that would add $8.2 billion in energy tax-break extensions to the package. Ensign’s 11th hour procedural hurdle has kept the Senate from voting on the housing bill until lawmakers return from their July 4th recess.

Prior to Ensign’s action, the Senate completed work on one section of the housing package, approving by an overwhelming 79 to 16 vote a portion of the bill that would modernize the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) and reform for government sponsored enterprises Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Home Loan Banks.