HIRI Economic Industry Update

The U.S. added 162,000 jobs in August 2026, reversing a loss of 70,000 jobs in August 2025, while construction unemployment fell to 3.1%.

National unemployment held steady at 4.1% in August 2026, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Construction jobs added rose 22.2% from July 2026 to August 2026, swinging from negative growth in August 2025 to positive growth in August 2026.

Contractor confidence turned broadly negative in the third quarter of 2026, reversing the mostly positive picture from the second quarter.

Landscape contractors posted the steepest drop, falling from 8.4 in Q2 2026 to 8.0 in Q3 2026 on the Farnsworth Contractor Index's 10-point scale. Remodeling and mechanical contractors also declined over the same period, while only exterior and finish contractors improved.

Housing affordability improved across every region from July 2025 to July 2026, led by the West's 8.8% gain.

The national Housing Affordability Index rose 5.1% year over year to 103.3 in July 2026, also up 1.5% from June 2026, according to the National Association of Realtors. The West posted the largest year-over-year gain at 8.8%, followed by the South at 6.8%, the Midwest at 4.3%, and the Northeast at 4.1%.

September 8, 2026

The U.S. added 162,000 jobs in August 2026, reversing a loss of 70,000 jobs in August 2025, while construction unemployment fell to 3.1%.

Contractor confidence turned broadly negative in the third quarter of 2026, reversing the mostly positive picture from the second quarter.

Housing affordability improved across every region from July 2025 to July 2026, led by the West's 8.8% gain.

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