Housing starts increased to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.215 million in June, 8.3% above the revised May rate of 1.122 million and 2.1% above the June 2016 rate.
Housing activity increased 1.6% in the West and jumped 83.7% in the Northeast. The Midwest’s housing activity grew 22.0%, while the South’s decreased 3.8%.
New building permits increased during the month, rising 7.4% to 1.254 million. Permits were up 5.1% from the June 2016 rate.
Housing completions were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.203 million, up 5.2% from the revised May estimate and 8.1% above the June 2016 rate.
Read the Census release.