The confidence survey asks builders to characterize current sales as "good," "fair" or "poor" and to gauge prospective buyers' traffic. It also asks participants to gauge the outlook for the next six months.
The housing market has been slow to strengthen more than two years after the recession ended in June 2009. Purchases of new houses rose 5.7 percent in September as discounted prices lured buyers in some parts of the country. Sales of previously owned homes, which make up about 94 percent of the market, fell 3 percent that month.
D.R. Horton
D.R. Horton, the second-largest homebuilder by revenue, reported quarterly earnings that missed analyst estimates. The Fort Worth, Texas-based company has been lowering costs and shifting its focus to move-up buyers as demand remains weak.
"We're still a bit cautious about the overall environment," Chief Financial Officer William Wheat said on a conference call with investors on Nov. 11. "It is still a challenging homebuilding environment out there."