Housing Starts Drop in August, But Permits Increase
The Commerce Department reported today that housing starts in August dropped 5 percent over July to an annual rate of 571,000 units. These starts represent the number of individual housing units that began construction in a given month. Last year, housing starts jumped 10.5 percent between July and August.
While the housing start news is not good, another figure released today gave some hope to the struggling national housing market. Building permit authorizations rose 3.2 percent over July to reach an annual rate of 620,000, the highest level since last December. Together, housing starts and building permits are looked to as leading indicators of the market’s direction.
From Acting U.S. Commerce Secretary Rebecca Blank on today’s news:
“Today’s housing report offers some positive, forward-looking news with a strong increase in housing permits. But as a whole, we know the market is volatile and struggling, which reinforces the urgent need to take action to put more people back to work.”
The full report from the Commerce Department is available here.
See other articles related to: building permits, commerce department, housing starts
This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/housing_starts_drop_in_august_but_permits_increase/4187.
Most Popular... This Week • Last 30 Days • Ever
In this article, UrbanTurf looks at the estimated annual maintenance costs associated... read »
Today, UrbanTurf is examining one of our favorite metrics regarding competition in th... read »
The residential development in the works along Florida Avenue NE is looking to increa... read »
Another concept has been unveiled for one of DC's most contentious development sites,... read »
Airbnb's push to build condos; the Virginia town that Gen-X loves; and Ohtani's Hawai... read »
DC Real Estate Guides
Short guides to navigating the DC-area real estate market
We've collected all our helpful guides for buying, selling and renting in and around Washington, DC in one place. Start browsing below!
First-Timer Primers
Intro guides for first-time home buyers
Unique Spaces
Awesome and unusual real estate from across the DC Metro