US Housing Starts, Building Permits, and Completions Decline in October

On Tuesday, the US Census Bureau reported that privately‐owned housing starts in October were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of 1,311,000. This is 3.1% below the revised September estimate of 1,353,000 and 4.0% below the October 2023 rate of 1,365,000. Single-family housing starts were at a rate of 970,000; this is 6.9% below the revised September figure of 1,042,000. The rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 326,000.

Building permits are the forward-looking portion of the report, and in October privately-owned housing units authorized by building permits were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,416,000. This is 0.6% below the revised September rate of 1,425,000 and 7.7% below the October 2023 rate of 1,534,000. Single-family authorizations were at a rate of 968,000; this is 0.5% above the revised September figure of 963,000. The rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 393,000.

Privately‐owned housing completions in October were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,614,000. This is 4.4% below the revised September estimate of 1,688,000 but 16.8% above the October 2023 rate of 1,382,000. Single-family housing completions were at a rate of 986,000; this is 1.4% below the revised September rate of 1,000,000. The rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 615,000.