Housing Starts Drop in December

Feb 26, 2019

Builder confidence in the market for newly-built single-family homes rose three points to 71 in October

Single-family housing starts in December were at a rate of 758,000, a 6.7 percent drop from the revised November figure of 812,000, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Privately-owned housing starts in December were at a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 1,078,000, down 11.2 percent from the revised November estimate of 1,214,000 and down 10.9 percent from the December 2017 rate of 1,210,000. An estimated 1,246,600 housing units were started in 2018, up 3.6 percent from the 2017 figure of 1,203,000.

Single-family authorizations in December were at a rate of 829,000, down 2.2 percent from the revised November figure of 848,000. Privately-owned housing units authorized by building permits in December were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,326,000, a slight 0.3 percent increase from the revised November rate of 1,322,000 and 0.5 percent above the December 2017 rate of 1,320,000. An estimated 1,310,700 housing units were authorized by building permits in 2018, which is 2.2 percent above the 2017 figure of 1,282,000.

Single-family housing completions in December were at a rate of 790,000, up by a scant 0.1 percent from the revised November rate of 789,000. Privately-owned housing completions in December were at a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 1,097,000, down by 2.7 percent from the revised November estimate of 1,128,000 and 8.4 percent below the December 2017 rate of 1,197,000. An estimated 1,191,700 housing units were completed in 2018, which is 3.4 percent above the 2017 figure of 1,152,900.

Single-family housing starts in December were at a rate of 758,000, a 6.7 percent drop from the revised November figure of 812,000

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Phil Hall

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Feb 26, 2019

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