Annual Pace For June
Provided by: Department of Commerce

Housing Starts m/m: 9.1%, pr. -2.7% (R from -3.3%) (May), 8.2% (Apr), -11.9% (Mar)

US housing starts, the number of new homes being constructed, surprisingly surged in June, increasing to an annual pace of 1.07 million units. Thats a 9.1% increase compared to May, and caught forecasts completly off guard. However, the data seems skewed by a new set of construction codes in New York City which inflated the number for the Northeast region. Excluding the Northeast, housing starts fell 4% in June. Most of these new starts in NYC were led by apartment building and condos - multifamily starts surged 43%, while singl-family homes fell to their slowest pace in 17 years. 

The climate in the housing sector remains pressured by multiple factors including a soft job market, a credit crunch, fading consumer confidence, high oil prices, and high level of unsold homes that is depressing prices. Those conditions have not changed and so this number is most likely an aberration from the prevailing trend.

Annual Pace For May
Provided by: Department of Commerce

Housing Starts m/m: -3.3%, pr. 8.2%, -11.9% (Mar), -0.7% (Feb)

Housing starts fell 3.3% to an annual pace of 975,000 from a revised 1.008 million in April. The reading was below forecasts and hits a new 17 year low. The housing market is dealing with excess supply as rising foreclosures, higher mortgage rates and declining property values create a glut of unsold homes. A reduction in housing starts may help to stabilize prices, as extra supply in the form of new construction would only add to extra supply. Building permits were down 1.3% percent, a sign that future construction will be weaker as well.

Lower starts however will cause the hard times in the construction sector to continue and will impact GDP in a negative way. Starts have dropped 32% since May 2007, which has been one of hte major drags on growth in the US economy. 

Annual Pace For April
Provided by: Department of Commerce

Housing Starts m/m: 8.2%, forecast -1.4%, pr. -11.9% (Mar), -0.7% (Feb)

Housing starts surprised on the upside for April, increasing to an annual pace of 1.03 million. This was a 8.2% increase on the previous month. Looking closer at the data, it shows that builders broke ground on 692,000 single-family homes at an annual rate, which is the fewest since January 1991. Construction of multifamily units rose 36% compared to a drop of 35% in March, so much of the increase was due to condominium and apt construction.

Building permits, a leading indicator towards future construction, rose 978K, reflecting an increase in both single and multi-family units.

Annual Pace For March
Provided by: Department of Commerce

Housing Starts m/m: -11.9%, forecast -6.1%, pr. -0.7%

Housing starts slipped more than expected falling to an annualized pace of 947,000. The fall was steeper than expected and means the housing market is still receding and has not hit bottom. It was the lowest level in 17 years, and showed that February's mild decrease was not an indication of the market stabilizing. Building permits declined 5.8%, also more than expected.

With foreclosures adding extra supply of unsold homes and driving down value of houses, new construction suffers and will continue to be a drag on the economy. Housing starts are expected to fall 30% this year the National Association of Home Builders forecast yesterday. Weaker housing starts will hurt in other ways as construction jobs decline, and prices of construction materials, appliances and furnishing to fall hurting those businesses.

Annual Pace For February
Provided by: Department of Commerce

Housing starts dropped in February from January's revised figures. Builders broke ground on 1.065 million homes at an annual pace, down 0.6% from the revised 1.071 million pace in January. The results beat expectations, though building permits, a leading indicator of housing construction declined another 7.8% to the slowest pace in 16 years. It may still be a while before the housing recession bottoms out as prices of homes continue to fall, and lending is harder to come by. The Fed will do all it can, but cutting rates later today, but the results will not be immediately felt in housing.   

For January
Provided by: Department of Commerce

Housing Starts rose 0.8% in January from December's revised estimate. The annual rate of 1.01M units remained close to the lowest level since 1991. With the housing market in recession, there are more unsold homes on the market, prices are falling, and foreclosures are on the rise. The data has not shown the market hitting a bottom, and future construction, as seen today in the Building Permits release, were down around 3%.

"Privately-owned housing starts in January were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,012,000. This is 0.8 percent above the revised December estimate of 1,004,000, but is 27.9 percent below the revised January 2007 rate of 1,403,000."