Home-building activity revved up in June, with housing starts up 8.3 percent to a rate of 1,215,000, according to the latest data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Single-family housing starts increased 6.3 percent to 849,000. Starts for units in buildings with five units or more came in at 359,000.
Permits started up again, as well, up 7.4 percent from May to 1,254,000, according to the data. Single-family permits increased 4.1 percent from May to 811,000. Permits for units in buildings with five units or more came in at 409,000.
Completions totaled 1,203,000 in June, rising 5.2 percent. Single-family completions increased 0.4 percent from May to 798,000. Completions for units in buildings with five units or more came in at 396,000.
“Today’s report reversed a downward trend in new-home construction, but will do little to shift the tide from the current seller’s market,” says realtor.com® Senior Economist Joseph Kirchner. “In order to significantly relieve the shortage of houses on the market, we should be seeing housing starts north of 2.2 million homes, far above June’s 1.2 million homes. We expect the bidding wars to continue for the foreseeable future in many inventory-starved housing markets.”
“We are seeing housing production return to trend after a softer reading last month,” said Robert Dietz, chief economist of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), in a statement. “The gradual growth in single-family starts in 2017 is in line with our forecast, and we should see this sector continue to strengthen throughout the year as consumers show interest in the housing market.”
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
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