The Commerce Department this morning reported a 9% increase in housing starts in February but at the same time said the issuance of building permits fell 2.5%, both compared to January.
The unexpected rise in housing starts came despite generally poor weather conditions in the Northeast and Midwest. Starts were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,525,000, up from the revised January estimate of 1,399,000 but 28.5 percent below the February 2006 rate of 2,132,000. Single-family housing starts were 1,220,000, 10.3 percent above the January figure of 1,106,000. Starts for units in buildings with five units or more was 266,000.
Regionally, single-family starts were down 26.0% in the Northeast, down 19.3% in the Midwest, up 16.4% in the South and up 37.4% in the West. SEE DATA HERE
Building permits fell to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,532,000 from the revised January rate of 1,571,000 and 28.6 percent below the February 2006 estimate of 2,147,000. Single-family authorizations were at a rate of 1,089,000, 3.1 percent below the January figure of 1,124,000. Authorizations of units in buildings with five units or more were at a rate of 372,000 in February.
The Commerce Department also reported that housing completions fell to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,664,000, 9.4 percent below the revised January estimate of 1,836,000 and 18.4 percent below the February 2006 rate of 2,038,000. Single-family housing completions in February were at a rate of 1,328,000, 11.3 percent below the January figure of 1,498,000. The February rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 299,000.
