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Housing starts rose to 685,000 annualized units in November, up 9.3% from the revised October pace. Permit issuance continues to grow as well, rising 5.7% in November. This suggests that the rate of new construction could continue to accelerate.


The more volatile multi-family starts lead growth, jumping 25.3% to an annualized rate of 238,000 units. Single-family starts grew less rapidly at 2.3%, but still account for the majority of starts at an annual pace of 447,000 units.

Permit issuance trends suggest that gains will continue in December as permit issuance grew by 5.7% to an annualized level of 681,000 permits. The issuances suggest that multi-family starts are likely to continue driving growth, as multi-family permits grew by 13.9%. Single-family permits rose by 1.6%.

Although the growth in housing starts is encouraging, it is growing from a low base. Historically housing starts are near 1.5 million units per year. Although we have seen some recovery, we are a long way off from those levels.

Read the report.

Housing starts jumped 15% in September to their fastest pace since 2008, surpassing the surge in home building that accompanied the 2010 home-buyer tax credit. Housing starts rose to an annualized pace of 872,000 units in September, up from the 758,000 pace seen in August.



The pace of single family starts rose 11% in September, to an annualized pace of 603,000 units. Multifamily construction also saw strong gains in September, gaining 25% and reaching a pace of 269,000 units per year.



Housing starts were also improved in September, rising 11.6% over the month. The gain in starts was seen primarily in multi-family units which rose 20.3% over the month. Single-family starts rose 6.7% in September as well.

Read the Census report.

Housing starts rose a modest 1.5% in January to 699,000 annualized units according to a Census Bureau report released this morning. December’s housing starts were revised up as well, from 657,000 annual units to 689,000. Permit issuance also rose in January to 676,000 annual units, up 0.7% from December. Housing completions declined by 12% in January. All measures of housing construction are well above year-ago levels.


Gains in housing starts were led by multifamily construction, which rose 8.5% in January. Single family starts declined by 1.0% to an annualized rate of 508,000 homes. Permits for both single and multi-family homes rose by 0.4% and 0.9% respectively.

Although we have seen significant improvements in housing starts in the last year, they are improving from a low base and have a long way to go. The post-recession peaks near 700,000 units per year are nowhere near the 30-year average of 1.5 million units per year.

Read the report.

New residential construction slowed somewhat in November, reaching an annual rate of 861,000 units, down from 888,000 the previous month. Despite November’s mild decline, housing starts remain 15% above levels seen as recently as August, at nearly the fastest pace since early 2008. In the past year, the pace of new home construction has increased 21.6%.



Single-family starts led the decline in November, falling 4.1% over the month. Despite the strong loss, single-family starts remain near their fastest pace in over four years and maintain a positive trend.



Permit issuance rose in November, rising 3.6% to an annual pace of 899,000 permits. Strong permit issuance points to a continuing recovery in housing construction. Total permit issuance is up 26.8% from year-ago levels.

Read the Census report.