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After holding steady for the past four months, builder confidence in the market for newly constructed single-family homes rose two points in June to a level of 60 on the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI). This is the highest reading since January 2016.

The median price of Orlando homes sold during the month of May increased more than 12 percent compared to May 2015 and crossed the $200,000 mark for the first time since August 2008. In addition, sales showed a year-over-year increase of nearly 7 percent despite a continuing slide in inventory.

In celebration of National Building Safety Month, traditionally recognized throughout the month of May, AGC participated in an exclusive, invitation-only White House Conference on Resilient Building Codes. Speakers shared insights on what adaptations buildings require in order to enhance resiliency, how to support local communities in protecting their building stock from natural and other disasters, and suggestions on incorporating resilience attributes into codes and standards. Click here (link is external) for the White House fact sheet on the event

This webinar, presented by The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Office of Regional Operations (ORO), Region 10 (AK, ID, WA, OR), will take place July 27, 2016, from 10:00 am – 11:15 pm PST (1:00 pm – 2:15 EST). The webinar will be an open community of sharing with subject matter experts from Federal, State, and local agencies and community partners who provide care and service to homeless persons.

The National September 11 Memorial Museum Pavilion in New York’s Lower Manhattan has earned national recognition in the 2016 Innovative Design in Engineering and Architecture with Structural Steel awards program (IDEAS2). In honor of this achievement, members of the project team will be presented with awards from the American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) during a ceremony to take place at the pavilion on Thursday, June 16, at 5 p.m.

Mortgage applications decreased 2.4 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association's (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending June 10, 2016. The previous week's results included an adjustment for the Memorial Day holiday

The level of commercial/multifamily mortgage debt outstanding increased by $35.3 billion in the first quarter of 2016, as three of the four major investor groups increased their holdings. That is a 1.2 percent increase over the fourth quarter of 2015.

USGBC released its LEED in Motion: Industrial Facilities report, which highlights the collaborative efforts across the manufacturing sector to design and implement LEED and prioritize environmental stewardship for industrial facilities. Currently, there are more than 1,755 LEED-certified industrial facilities worldwide, totaling more than 496 million square feet, and an additional 2,710 projects registered that total nearly 737 million square feet

The Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has selected 22 leaders to participate in its 2016 Executive Energy Leadership program (Energy Execs), which provides non-technical business, governmental, and community leaders throughout the country an opportunity to learn about renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies, analytical tools, and financing to guide their organizations and communities in energy-related decisions and planning.

The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) Builder Application Survey (BAS) data for May 2016 shows mortgage applications for new home purchases decreased by 6 percent relative to the previous month. This change does not include any adjustment for typical seasonal patterns.

Time is running out for industry professionals to submit an abstract to present during Building Innovation 2017: The National Institute of Building Sciences Fifth Annual Conference and Expo, to be held January 9-12, 2017, at the Mandarin Oriental in Washington, D.C.

The Gordian Group, in partnership with Sightlines and the National Institute of Building Sciences, will host the free webinar, “Create & Maintain High Performing Education Facilities,” next Wednesday, June 22 at 2:00 pm ET/11:00 am PT to address K-12 and higher education funding and maintenance challenges.

We are pleased that Zillow has agreed to a settlement amount of $130 million in damages instead of going to trial, and that the parties have reached an amicable resolution.

Seventy-one percent of non-homeowners repaying their student loans on time believe their debt is stymieing their ability to purchase a home, and slightly over half of all borrowers say they expect to be delayed from buying by more than five years

Whirlpool Corporation today announced that it will continue to provide a new range and refrigerator for every new Habitat for Humanity home constructed in the U.S. in 2016, donating up to $5 million in products throughout the year and building upon a 17-year partnership with the organization

Now that Mother Nature is bringing the heat of summer to Michigan, Consumers Energy is reminding the public to stay safe while working or playing outside.

Consumers Energy today celebrated its first solar power plant -- a 17-acre array of 11,000 Michigan-made solar panels at Grand Valley State University that produces electricity for Michigan homes and businesses.

The National Institute of Building Sciences Consultative Council will host a briefing during High Performance Building Week to highlight its 2015 Moving Forward Report. The Congressional luncheon briefing, “Achieving a High-Performance Built Environment: Findings and Recommendations from the Consultative Council,” will be held Thursday, June 16, from noon to 1:00 p.m. at the Rayburn House Office Building, Room 2253, in Washington, D.C.

Earlier this spring, Wiley released the twelfth edition of Architectural Graphic Standards, its seminal reference for building design and construction professionals. Among the updates and features in the edition is a newly added chapter on resilience developed under the leadership of the National Institute of Building Sciences.

In accordance with the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act, HUD published a Notice in the June 10, 2016, Federal Register identifying Federal buildings and other real property HUD has reviewed for suitability for use to assist the homeless. The properties were reviewed using information provided to HUD by Federal landholding agencies or by GSA regarding their inventories of excess or surplus property. The list includes buildings and properties in Alabama, Colorado, Georgia, Kentucky, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Virginia