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<p>Homebuilders became slightly less optimistic this month according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), yet their confidence remains higher than any point prior to the COVID-19 pandemic (top graph below).  Likewise, the Traffic of Prospective Buyers component fell but remains at a historically high level (bottom graph).  The NAHB notes that prospective buyers are being increasingly sidelined by high home prices. </p>
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<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter size-large"><img src="https://ns2020-investech.investech.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/NAHB.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-9500"/></figure></div>
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