Single-family housing starts declined in June to the lowest rate since July 2024 as elevated interest rates, rising inventories and ongoing supply-side issues continue to act as headwinds for the housing sector.
Due to a solid increase in multifamily production, overall housing starts increased 4.6% in June to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.32 million units, according to a report from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau.
The June reading of 1.32 million starts is the number of housing units builders would begin if development kept this pace for the next 12 months. Within this overall number, single-family starts decreased 4.6% to an 883,000 seasonally adjusted annual rate and are down 10% compared to June 2024. The multifamily sector, which includes apartment buildings and condos, increased 30% to an annualized 438,000 pace.
Single-family building conditions continued to weaken in June as housing affordability challenges caused builder traffic to move lower as buyers moved to the sidelines. Rising levels of resale inventory are also a headwind for the industry.
Single-family home building in the South is down 12.4% on a year-to-date basis, far outpacing declines in the Northeast and the West. However, single-family home building is up 10% on a year-to-date basis in the Midwest, where housing affordability conditions are generally better than much of the nation.
On a regional and year-to-date basis, combined single-family and multifamily starts were 28.8% higher in the Northeast, 13.1% higher in the Midwest, 8.1% lower in the South and 0.6% lower in the West.
Overall permits increased 0.2% to a 1.40-million-unit annualized rate in June. Single-family permits decreased 3.7% to an 866,000-unit rate and are down 8.4% compared to June 2024. Multifamily permits increased 7.3% to a 531,000 pace.
Looking at regional permit data on a year-to-date basis, permits were 16.9% lower in the Northeast, 8.2% higher in the Midwest, 3.3% lower in the South and 3.7% lower in the West.
The declines for single-family home building have caused the number of single-family homes under construction to level off. There are currently 622,000 single-family homes under construction, which is 6% lower than a year ago. The number of apartments under construction in June, 739,000, is 18.8% lower than a year ago.
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This article was originally published by a eyeonhousing.org . Read the Original article here. .
