Eye On Housing
Single-family production remained at an anemic pace in February as builders continue to wrestle with elevated mortgage rates, high construction costs and tightening credit conditions that threaten to be exacerbated by recent turmoil in the banking system. Led by gains in apartment construction, overall housing starts in February increased 9.8% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.45 million units,… Read More ›
Over the first month of 2023, the total number of single-family permits issued year-to-date (YTD) nationwide reached 53,062. On a year-over-year (YoY) basis, this is 36.4% below the January 2022 level of 83,404. Year-to-date ending in January, single-family permits declined in all four regions. The Northeast posted a decline of 20.3%, while the West region reported the steepest decline of… Read More ›
While nationwide single-family housing starts have slowed in the past year, the largest drop on a percentage basis is occurring in the densest counties, due to high housing costs. Meanwhile, multifamily growth was robust throughout much of the nation at the end of 2022, with the notable exception in high-density markets, according to the latest findings from the National Association… Read More ›
Data from the Census Bureau’s latest Survey of Market Absorptions of New Multifamily Units (SOMA) indicates that the multifamily market continues to have high demand with apartment completions reaching their highest level since the third quarter of 2021. The absorption rate of new condominiums reached 82.0%, the best rate since the third quarter of 2013. With low single-family housing supply… Read More ›
While the two main confidence indexes for multifamily housing increased slightly in the fourth quarter, they both remain in negative territory, according to results from the Multifamily Market Survey (MMS) released today by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). The MMS produces two separate indices. The Multifamily Production Index (MPI) increased two points to 34 compared to the previous… Read More ›
The missing middle construction sector includes development of medium-density housing, such as townhouses, duplexes and other small multifamily properties. While townhouse construction has trended higher in recent quarters, the multifamily segment of the missing middle (apartments in 2- to 4-unit properties) has disappointed. For 2021, there were only 12,000 starts of such residences. This is flat from from 2020, during a period… Read More ›
According to NAHB analysis of quarterly Census data, the count of multifamily, for-rent housing starts remained elevated during the fourth quarter of 2022. For the fourth quarter, 133,000 multifamily residences started construction. For 2022 as whole, 525,000 rental apartments started construction. The market share of rental units of multifamily construction starts increased to almost 98% as the already small condo… Read More ›
Due to elevated mortgage rates and high construction costs, overall housing starts decreased 4.5% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.31 million units in January, according to data from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau. Although rising builder sentiment indicates a turning point for housing later this year, the volatility in the… Read More ›
For 2022, the total number of single-family permits issued year-to-date (YTD) nationwide reached 972,180. On a year-over-year (YoY) basis, this is 12.5% below the 2021 level of 1,111,414. Year-to-date ending in December, single-family permits declined in all four regions. The South posted a decline of 10.4%, while the Western region reported the steepest decline of 15.9%. The Northeast declined by… Read More ›
Led by a decline in multifamily production, overall housing starts decreased 1.4% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.38 million units in December, according to data from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau. Also of note, single-family housing starts ended the year down more than 10%, marking the first annual decline since… Read More ›