Housing starts slid in October
Housing starts endured a tough month in October. According to U.S. Census Bureau figures, privately-owned starts in October slumped to 1,311,000, a 3.1 percent drop from the revised September estimate of 1,353,000. It's also 4 percent below the October 2023 rate of 1,365,000.
In October, single-family housing starts clocked in at a rate of 970,000, 6.9 percent lower than the revised September figure of 1,042,000.
Geography, and weather, played a heavy role in October's numbers. Single-family starts plummeted 10.2 percent in the South, due in large part to the destruction wrought by Helene and Milton. Meanwhile, single-family housing projects dropped 28.7 percent in the Northeast (compared to September) but increased by 4.6 percent in the Midwest and the West.
Despite dim October numbers, there may be reason for optimism ahead. As the NAHB points out in a blog post, "On a year-to-date basis, single-family construction is up 9.3 percent." NAHB Chairman Carl Harris also adds: "Although housing starts declined in October, builder sentiment improved for a third straight month in November as builders anticipate an improved regulatory environment in 2025 that will allow the industry to increase housing supply.”
Get the rest of October's data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development here.
