Catherine Reagor of the Arizona Republic reports that new home permits in the Phoenix metro area were up more than 40% in 2015 compared with 2014. And things really picked up at the end of 2015. For example, there were 1,076 permits issued in November, 75% higher than the same month in 2014. New home closings for the month totaled 1,047, which was 30% higher than the same month a year previously. Plus December had the most new home closings since October 2008. The only bad thing about the higher volume is that builders can’t keep up with supply, due mainly to the lack of skilled labor. This means longer construction times, with some builders quoting construction periods more than twice as long as they would like. So if you are thinking of buying new, get your order in now if you want to close this year.
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