Homebuilder confidence in the market fell for the third straight month in August, according to the latest National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Index (HMI) which was released today. The HMI dropped one point to 13, the lowest reading since March 2009.

Two out of three HMI’s component indexes dropped in August. The component measuring current sales conditions fell one point to 14, while the component for sales expectations for the next six months declined three points to 18. The component for the traffic of prospective buyers was unchanged at 10.

Meanwhile, HMIs in three out of four regions registered declines in August. A six-point dropped to 18 in the Northeast partially offset a big gain in that region in the previous month, while the South and West each posted one-point declines to 13 and 8, respectively. The HMI for the Midwest held even at 15 in August.

Reference: www.NAHB.org