The newly-built single-family homes market reached a milestone in July-the Housing Market Index rose four points to 53, the first time builder confidence has been above 50 since January, according to the National Association of Home Builders.
A reading above 50 in the NAHB's HMI means more builders view sales conditions as good than poor.
"An improving job market goes hand-in-hand with a rise in builder confidence," said NAHB Chief Economist David Crowe in a statement. "As employment increases and those with jobs feel more secure about their own economic situation, they are more likely to feel comfortable about buying a home."
All three components used to calculate the HMI-which includes sales expectations and traffic of prospective buyers, in addition to builder perceptions of the market-posted gains in July.
The index gauging current sales conditions increased four points to 57, while the index measuring expectations for future sales rose six points to 64 and the index gauging traffic of prospective buyers increased three points to 39.
