Total housing starts in the US declined in March, after a strong pace was recorded in February. Total starts were down almost 7 per cent, falling to a 1.215 million seasonally adjusted annual rate, according to the joint data release from the Census Bureau and HUD April 18. Single-family starts posted a monthly decline of 6 per cent in March, falling to an 821,000 annual rate. The February annualized rate, 875,000, was the fastest monthly pace since the Great Recession, while the March rate ranked fourth. Single-family permits were down 1 per cent in March, but recorded the third largest annual pace since the recession.
US Housing Starts: February 2017
Total housing starts declined in March, after a strong pace was recorded in February. Total starts were down almost 7 per cent, falling to a 1.215 million seasonally adjusted annual rate, according to the joint data release from the Census Bureau and HUD Tuesday.
SINGLE FAMILY HOUSING STARTS
Single-family starts posted a monthly decline of 6 per cent in March, falling to an 821,000 annual rate. The February annualized rate, 875,000, was the fastest monthly pace since the Great Recession, while the March rate ranked fourth. Single-family permits were down 1 per cent in March, but recorded the third largest annual pace since the recession. Unseasonably warm weather for much of the country in February, followed by snow in March, likely affected the February-to-March changes.
As measured on a three-month moving average, the data are consistent with recent trends in the NAHB/Wells Fargo measure of single-family builder confidence. The three-month moving average of single-family starts reached a post-recession high in March, and NAHB is forecasting continued growth for this sector as the year progresses.
The all-time peak at US$493.50 dates back to 1993.