the construction sector provides much of the fuel In a typical economic recovery, the construction sector provides much of the fuel. But developers are trying to sell a tremendous glut of homes built during the boom years and they are competing against foreclosed homes selling at deep discounts.

Thanks to the tax credits, sales of new homes rose nearly 15 percent in April. That followed a nearly 30 percent surge in March, the biggest monthly increase in 47 years.

But now that they are gone, "the reduction in consumer activity may have been more dramatic than some builders had anticipated," said Bob Jones, a builder from Bloomfield Hills, Mich. and the Washington-based trade group's chairman.