U.S. homebuilder sentiment turns negative for first time in five months

STORY: U.S. homebuilder sentiment turns negative for first time in five months DATELINE: Sept. 19, 2023 LENGTH: 00:01:02 LOCATION: Washington D.C. CATEGORY: ECONOMY SHOTLIST: 1. various of construction sites 2. various of local residential areas STORYLINE: U.S. homebuilder confidence dropped below the key break-even measure of 50 for the first time in five months amid high mortgage rates, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) released Monday. Builder confidence in the market for newly-built single-family homes in September fell five points to 45, as persistently high mortgage rates above 7 percent continue to erode builder confidence, the association said in a statement. The decrease follows a 6-point drop in August. The average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage has been over 7 percent since June, due to the U.S. Federal Reserve's aggressive rate hikes since March last year. The target range for the federal funds rate is at 5.25 percent to 5