The U.S. government is reporting that privately‐owned housing starts in February were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,162,000. This figure is 8.7% lower than January’s revised estimate and 9.9% below one year ago. Single‐family housing starts were at a rate of 805k – which is 17% below January’s number. The rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 352k. Privately‐owned housing units authorized by building permits in February were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,296,000. This number 1.6% below the January’s revised rate oand is 2% below February, 2018. Single‐family authorizations in February were at a rate of 821k (same as January). Authorizations of units in buildings with five units or more
were at a rate of 439k in February.
Note: Data collection and processing were delayed for this indicator release due to the lapse in federal funding from December 22, 2018 through January 25, 2019. While response rates were consistent with normal levels, delays in data collection for December and January could make it more difficult to determine exact start and completion dates. The revised data collection schedule caused the adjustments for anticipated late reported December starts and completions to be less accurate than normal, resulting in larger than normal revisions.
Click here to read the full report at Census.gov.
