WASHINGTON, DC—Builder confidence in the market for newly-built single-family homes has hit an eight-month high, the National Association of Home Builders said Thursday. National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index rose two points to reach 70 for November, the second-highest level on record since July 2005.

“Demand for housing is increasing at a consistent pace, driven by job and economic growth, rising homeownership rates and limited housing inventory,” says Robert Dietz, chief economist with NAHB. “With these economic fundamentals in place, we should see continued upward movement of the single-family housing market as we close out 2017.”

The association's chairman, Granger McDonald, who's also chairman and CEO of Kerrville, TX-based builder MacDonald Cos., says November's builder conference reading is “close to a post-recession high—a strong indicator that the housing market continues to grow steadily. However, our members still face supply-side constraints, such as lot and labor shortages and ongoing building material price increases.”