Housing starts and permits stayed below expectations in September, signaling a supply slowdown because of shortages of materials and labor. The headline figure for housing starts fell by 1.6% on the month to 1.555 million units annualized because of a drop in multifamily units while single-family starts—the more important series—remained unchanged, ... READ MORE >
housing starts
Housing starts in Canada fall for the fourth consecutive month
Housing starts in Canada fell 4.42% to 251,151 in September, another sign of the continuing shortages of raw materials and labor that have gripped the economy. The drop, the fourth monthly decline in a row, was led by dramatic decreases in Ontario (9,380 units), Alberta (4,730 units) and most notably British Columbia (11,164 units), according to data ... READ MORE >
Home builders, facing shortage of materials, can’t meet soaring demand
Even as the housing market continues to lead the economic recovery in the United States, home builders, whipsawed by more than a year of dramatic changes fueled by the pandemic, are facing new pressures as they try to meet surging demand. Already, builders have been scrambling to find enough workers to put up the homes. But now, builders face an acute ... READ MORE >
CHART OF THE DAY: Housing market stays steady despite headwinds
The housing market in the United States remained resilient in May as developers continued to grapple with higher costs amid a shortage of supply. Housing starts rose 3.6% to 1.57 million while permits dipped 3% to 1.68 million, according to Commerce Department data released on Wednesday. While off the peaks from earlier this year, both figures are above ... READ MORE >
CHART OF THE DAY: Housing permits hold while lack of materials stifles starts
Homebuilders continue to be bullish on the American housing market as housing permits remained above 1.7 million for the fifth straight month, coming in at 1.76 million in April, according to government data released Tuesday. We expected permits to remain strong as they are often a result of homebuilder confidence, which also held in April; the National ... READ MORE >
CHART OF THE DAY: Housing is on fire
Housing starts skyrocketed 19.4% in March to 1.739 million, blowing past expectations of 1.613 million and well above the 1.5 million long-term equilibrium, according to government data released Friday. The robust increase is a reversal from February's dip, which in hindsight appears to have been related more to the deep freeze that gripped the nation ... READ MORE >
CHART OF THE DAY: Housing market hits the brakes
Throughout the pandemic, a bright spot in the American economy has been housing, which had incredible growth as buyers looking for more space in the suburbs took advantage of historically low interest rates. Homebuilders responded, pushing starts and permits above the projected 1.5 million long-term equilibrium rate between supply and demand during the ... READ MORE >
CHART OF THE DAY: Housing activity continues to surge
Home builders remain active as the housing market closed out last year in a strong fashion. Housing starts rose by 5.8% to an annualized rate of 1.67 million in December, ending the year as one of the strongest in a decade, the Commerce Department reported on Thursday. And housing permits, an indicator of future activity, increased as well, by 4.5% to an ... READ MORE >
CHART OF THE DAY: Homes for the holidays
Oh, there’s no place like home for the holidays. So begins the holiday standard made famous by Perry Como. Composed in the 1950s by Robert Allen with lyrics by Al Stillman, the song seems fitting these days as Americans are lured to the suburbs, just as they were when Mr. C. was in his prime. Only this time around, instead of being fueled by postwar ... READ MORE >
CHART OF THE DAY: Homebuilder confidence reaches all-time high
Confidence among homebuilders reached an all-time high in November as buyers looking for more room to live and work continued to enter the market, according to the National Association of Homebuilders Housing Market Index released on Wednesday. The index, which rose to 90, is a composite measurement of future sales, present sales and buyer traffic -- all ... READ MORE >