Housing starts decreased to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.580 million in January, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The decrease was 6.0% below the revised December estimate of 1.680 million and is 2.3% below the January 2020 rate of 1.617 million. Single-family home starts fell 12.2% from last month.
Housing starts were mixed across the country, falling in the Midwest (12.3%), West (11.4%) and South (2.5%), but rising in the Northeast (2.3%).
New building permits were 1.881 million in January, 10.4% higher from the previous month and 22.5% higher year-over-year. Single-family building permits increased 3.8% from the revised December figure.
Housing completions were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.336 million, down 2.3% from the revised December estimate but 2.4% above the January 2020 rate.
Read the Census release.
