The index gauges builder perceptions of current single-family home sales and sales expectations for the next six months as "good," "fair" or "poor." The survey also asks builders to rate traffic of prospective buyers as "high to very high," "average" or "low to very low." Scores for each component are then used to calculate a seasonally adjusted index where any number over 50 indicates that more builders view conditions as good than poor.

Index Lower Than Expected, But Positive

A new release came out today and although the index was positive, the Bloomberg Consensus Number was lower than any economist's forecast.

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The housing market index has long been signaling strength in the new home market that has yet to appear, but the signal is less strong in May. The index fell 2 points from April to 54 which is below the low-end Econoday forecast.

Weakness in traffic has been a major feature of this report, underscoring the lack of first-time buyers in the housing sector. A plus in today's report is a 1 point gain in future sales, a component that is well out in front at a very strong 64.