Happy Sunday, and welcome to Benzinga’s financial advisor newsletter.

Today we're discussing housing prices. Builders across the U.S. are slashing prices and offering major incentives on new homes as unsold inventory piles up. But these deals aren’t everywhere — they’re mostly concentrated in states like Texas and Florida, where a building boom collided with higher

Plus, a look back at the last week of market activity.

INDUSTRY CHATTER

🏡 Homebuilders Are Cutting Prices — Here’s Where Buyers Have the Upper Hand

If you’re watching the housing market closely, here’s something to pay attention to: Builders are sitting on more unsold homes than we’ve seen since the Great Recession. And that’s leading to something pretty rare in real estate — real deals.

Thanks to years of aggressive building during the post-pandemic housing boom, combined with today’s higher mortgage rates and affordability challenges, some builders are sitting on a glut of “spec homes” — move-in ready properties built without a buyer lined up. To move these homes, they’re offering major incentives: we’re talking lower interest rates (thanks to mortgage rate buydowns), credits toward closing costs, and even cash for upgrades. In some areas, prices are dropping by tens of thousands of dollars, according to a Yahoo Finance report.

But — and it’s a big but — this isn’t happening everywhere. Markets like Texas, Florida, and parts of Arizona, where new construction homes have exploded in recent years, are seeing the biggest discounts. Think of suburbs around Austin or San Antonio, where buyers have scored five-figure price cuts, plus perks like new appliances and upgraded finishes. Meanwhile, more land-constrained areas like coastal California or parts of the Midwest still have limited inventory and red-hot demand. There? Prices are holding firm.

It’s a tale of two markets: one where buyers can finally flex some negotiating power, and another where bidding wars are still the norm.

Builders are walking a fine line right now — clearing out inventory while bracing for the next wave of economic uncertainty. That’s why they’re prioritizing flexibility. Many are shifting to spec home construction not just to meet buyer demand for quick move-ins, but also to get ahead of potential tariff hikes and rising labor costs.

So what does this mean if you’re house hunting in 2025? If you’re in the right market — or willing to move to one — you might find a new construction home that’s suddenly within reach. But don’t wait too long. As inventory gets cleared out, the leverage may swing back to sellers sooner than you think.

MARKET RECAP

Trump Blasts Powell, Nvidia Tumbles On New Export Ban, Gold Defies Gravity

Wall Street wrapped up a shortened trading week ahead of the Easter holiday in the red, weighed down by fresh export restrictions on chips to China that sent tech and semiconductor stocks tumbling.

On Tuesday, Nvidia Corp. revealed it was notified by the Trump administration on April 9 that its H20 AI chip would now require an export license to be sold in China. The company warned that these tighter controls could slash its earnings by $5.5 billion.

Nvidia shares dropped 8.5% this week, erasing nearly half of the previous week’s gains. The broader semiconductor sector – as tracked by the iShares Semiconductor ETF – followed suit, sliding 3% and logging its seventh weekly decline out of the past eight.

First-quarter earnings season delivered a mixed bag. While banks and streaming giant Netflix Inc showed solid performance, UnitedHealth Group Inc shocked investors by slashing its full-year guidance far below Wall Street expectations.

UnitedHealth shares plummeted 22.4% on Thursday, marking their worst one-day drop since 1998.

In trade news, Canada announced a six-month suspension of countermeasure tariffs on select U.S. goods essential for domestic manufacturing and food packaging. This move is expected to ease cross-border supply chain pressures, particularly benefiting Michigan-based automakers.

On the macro front, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell flagged inflation and growth risks stemming from trade tariffs, reiterating the Fed’s cautious stance and signaling that rate cuts won’t come prematurely.

This cautious tone triggered an angry response from President Donald Trump, who blasted Powell as "always too late" on rate cuts and hinted at prematurely removing him from office, despite Powell's term running through May 2026.

Meanwhile, the European Central Bank executed its sixth consecutive rate cut, further fueling Trump's public frustration with the Fed. During an Oval Office meeting with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Trump doubled down, declaring that Powell “will be out if the President asks.”

Gold continues to defy gravity, fueled by strong investor demand, heightened policy uncertainty, and persistent central bank buying.

Bullion prices – as tracked by the SPDR Gold Trust – soared to $3,330 per ounce, marking a new all-time high and extending gains to 14 of the past 16 weeks.

THE WEEK AHEAD

Tesla and Alphabet earning reports, US Manufacturing PMI and new home sales, Canada retail sales, and more

Economic Data

• Monday: US leading economic indicators

• Tuesday: Philadelphia Fed President Harker speaks, Canada RMPI

• Wednesday: US Manufacturing PMI and new home sales

• Thursday: US initial jobless claims and durable goods orders

• Friday: US consumer sentiment, Canada retail sales

Earnings

• Monday: W.R. Berkley (WRB), Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS)

• Tuesday: Tesla (TSLA), Verizon (VZ), Lockheed Martin (LMT)

• Wednesday: Philip Morris (PM), IBM (IBM), Boeing (BA)

• Thursday: Alphabet (GOOG), Procter & Gamble (PG), Pepsico (PEP)

• Friday: AbbVie (ABBV), HCA Healthcare (HCA)

Click here for the full calendar of economic data and earnings reports.

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