January Building Permits Up 10.4% — Housing Starts and Completions Reported Lower

The U.S. Census Bureau has reported that privately‐owned housing starts in January were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of 1,580,000. This is -6.0% below the revised December estimate of 1,680,000 and is -2.3% below the January 2020 rate. Single-family housing starts in January were at a rate of 1,162,000; and this is -12.2% below the revised December figure. The January rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 402,000. Building permits are the forward-looking portion of the report, and in January privately-owned housing units authorized by building permits were at a SAAR of 1,881,000. This is 10.4% above the revised December rate of 1,704,000 and is 22.5% above the January 2020 rate. Single-family authorizations in January were at a rate of 1,269,000; this is 3.8% above the December figure of 1,223,000. Authorizations of units in buildings with five units or more were at a rate of 577,000. Privately-owned housing completions in January were at a SAAR of 1,336,000. This is -2.3% below the revised December estimate of 1,368,000 but is 2.4% above the January 2020 rate of 1,305,000. Single-family housing completions in January were at a rate of 1,036,000; this is 10.0% above the revised December rate of 942,000. The January rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 296,000.