Builder confidence slumped every month this year as inflation rose and demand for new residential housing lagged, according to the latest data from the National Association of Home Builders and Wells Fargo.

In December, builder confidence in the market for newly built single-family homes registered its twelfth consecutive decline, dropping two points to 31 and marking the lowest such reading since mid-2012 and the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020. Any number over 50 indicates that more builders view conditions as good than poor.

Regionally, the Northeast fell five points to 37, the Midwest dropped four points to 34, the South fell six points to 36 and the West posted a three-point decline to 26.