US Housing Starts, Permits, and Completions All Decline in June

The US Census Bureau on Wednesday (7-19-23) reported that privately‐owned housing starts in June were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of 1,434,000. This is 8.0% below the revised May estimate of 1,559,000 and 8.1% below the June 2022 rate of 1,561,000. Single-family housing starts in June were at a rate of 935,000; this is 7.0% below the revised May figure of 1,005,000. The rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 482,000.

Building permits are the forward-looking portion of the report, and in June privately-owned housing units authorized by building permits were at a SAAR of 1,440,000. This is 3.7% below the revised May rate of 1,496,000 and 15.3% below the June 2022 rate of 1,701,000. Single-family authorizations in June were at a rate of 922,000; this is 2.2% above the revised May figure of 902,000. Authorizations of units in buildings with five units or more were at a rate of 467,000.

Privately‐owned housing completions in June were at a SAAR of 1,468,000. This is 3.3% below the revised May estimate of 1,518,000 but 5.5% above the June 2022 rate of 1,392,000. Single‐family housing completions in June were at a rate of 986,000; this is 2.8% below the revised May rate of 1,014,000. The rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 476,000.