The July builder sentiment numbers released by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) fell two points to 34 nationally and 27 in the West amid continued economic uncertainty and market challenges. The NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) gauges builder confidence in the market for newly built single-family homes. Locally, the Seattle metro area’s unemployment rate is 5.2%, one point higher than the U.S. unemployment rate.

The Puget Sound region saw its population growth moderate over the past year, according to new population estimates from the Office of Financial Management featured in the July Builders Bulletin.

Washington’s unemployment rate increased to 5.2% in April.