Single-Family Housing Starts and Permits Dive Eight Percent in June

The Census Department’s New Residential Construction reports has the starts, permits, and completions data for June 2022.

Building Permits 

• Privately‐owned housing units authorized by building permits in June were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,685,000. This is 0.6 percent below the revised May rate of 1,695,000, but is 1.4 percent above the June 2021 rate of 1,661,000.
• Single‐family authorizations in June were at a rate of 967,000; this is 8.0 percent below the revised May figure of 1,051,000. 
• Authorizations of units in buildings with five units or more were at a rate of 666,000 in June. 

Housing Starts 

• Privately‐owned housing starts in June were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,559,000. This is 2.0 percent below the revised May estimate of 1,591,000 and is 6.3 percent below the June 2021 rate of 1,664,000. 
• Single‐family housing starts in June were at a rate of 982,000; this is 8.1 percent below the revised May figure of 1,068,000. 
• The June rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 568,000. 

Housing Completions 

• Privately‐owned housing completions in June were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,365,000. This is 4.6 percent  below the revised May estimate of 1,431,000, but is 4.6 percent above the June 2021 rate of 1,305,000. 
• Single‐family housing completions in June were at a rate of 996,000; this is 4.1 percent below the revised May rate of 1,039,000. 
• The June rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 366,000.  

Housing Starts, Permits, Completions

Housing Starts, Permits, Completions, Not Seasonally Adjusted 

Seasonally-adjusted, annualized numbers have a way of making increases and declines as well as the overall numbers look much worse or better than reality to persons not familiar with how adjustments work.

To put things into perspective, there were actually 143,000 starts in June. After adjustments, starts are reported as 1,559,000 units.

Many disagree with these seasonal adjustments. However, it is the best way of looking at monthly changes. Year-over-year comparisons are best done with unadjusted numbers.

Housing Starts Single Family vs Multi-Family 

Housing Weakens

Single-family has weakened from 1,220,000 starts in November 2021 to 982,000 in July 2022.  That’s a 19.5 percent decline. 

This post originated at MishTalk.Com.

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