From RealTrends.com: Nationwide housing starts inched up 1.7 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 546,000 units in July from a downwardly revised figure in the previous month, according to U.S. Commerce Department figures released today. The gain occurred entirely on the multi-family side, with single-family housing production falling 4.2 percent to 432,000 units.The entire 1.7 percent gain in housing production this July was due to a 32.6 percent jump on the more volatile multi-family side, which brought that sector back closer to trend at an 114,000-unit rate following a major dip in the previous month. Meanwhile, single-family housing production declined 4.2 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 432,000 units, its lowest mark since May of 2009.
Two regions registered improved starts activity in July, with the Northeast and Midwest each posting double-digit gains, of 30.5 percent and 10.7 percent, respectively. The South, which is the country’s largest housing market, posted a 6.3 percent decline in starts this July, while the West posted no change in starts activity.
Permit issuance, which can be an indicator of future building activity, declined 3.1 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 565,000 units in July. Single-family permits fell 1.2 percent to 416,000 units, while multi-family permits fell 8 percent to 149,000 units. Regionally, permits fell nearly 26 percent in the Northeast, 1.1 percent in the Midwest, and 4.9 percent in the West, but gained 3.9 percent in the South in July.