Housing Starts, Building Permits Beat Forecasts in April

New Residential Construction Statistics Stronger than Expected

New residential construction statistics for housing starts and building permits in April both beat their consensus forecasts. Even a match to the forecasts would’ve shown significant improvement.

Housing Starts

Privately‐owned housing starts in April were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,235,000. That’s up 5.7% (±13.0%) from the revised March estimate of 1,168,000, but 2.5% (±10.4%) below the April 2018 rate of
1,267,000.

Single‐family housing starts in April came in at a rate of 854,000, which is 6.2% (±13.7%) higher than the revised March figure of 804,000. The April rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 359,000.

Building Permits

Privately‐owned housing units authorized by building permits in April were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,296,000, a 0.6% (±2.6%) gain from the revised March rate of 1,288,000. But that is still 5.0% (±1.4%) below the April 2018 rate of 1,364,000.

Single‐family authorizations in April were at a rate of 782,000; this is 4.2% (±1.2%) below the revised March figure of 816,000. Authorizations of units in buildings with five units or more were at a rate of 467,000 in April.

Housing Completions

Privately‐owned housing completions came in at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,312,000 in April, which is 1.4% (±15.5%) below the revised March estimate of 1,331,000. That is still 5.5% (±11.9%) higher than the April 2018 rate of 1,244,000.

Single‐family housing completions came in at a rate of 918,000, which is 4.1% (±13.4%) below the revised March rate of 957,000. The rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 381,000 in April