The Federal Reserve’s Beige Book, which tracks anecdotal evidence in the economy in each of the Fed’s districts, had the following notes related to civil engineering and land development in District 6, the southeast:
Real Estate and Construction
Reports from Realtors indicated that existing home sales were stabilizing overall. Florida contacts noted that the steady improvement in sales over the past several months moderated somewhat in April, whereas other parts of the District experienced minor gains over the month. Homebuilders noted that new home inventories were trending down on a year-over-year basis as construction remained at low levels and new home sales improved modestly. Home sales prices continued to decline according to most reports. The outlook for sales strengthened in April according to most Realtor and homebuilder contacts.Commercial real estate activity remained weak. Vacancy rates continued to rise in many parts of the District, putting downward pressure on rents, most notably in the retail sector. Contractors reported more projects being postponed or cancelled. Commercial real estate contacts anticipate more space will become vacant in the coming months and that construction will continue to slow.
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Employment and Prices
Labor market conditions continued to be weak. Many firms reported additional cuts in hours or had instituted mandatory unpaid days off for some staff. State and local governments were also reducing payrolls because of budgetary pressure. However, the pace of layoffs appears to have slowed, as fewer firms reported layoffs than earlier in the year. There were also scattered reports of increased temp hiring, although several contacts noted that these positions were largely seasonal in nature.Homebuilders and manufacturing firms continued to report that prices paid for both raw materials and imported finished goods were below year-earlier levels. Retailers noted a reduction in price discounting compared to previous months, and a majority of merchants reported that selling prices were generally on par with a year earlier.
