US Private Residential Spending Rises 1.5% in October

A closer look at the US Census Bureau’s construction spending report for October, with a focus on residential construction costs and analysis provided by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), reveals that private residential construction spending increased 1.5% in October. Year-over-year, spending was 6.4% higher.

NAHB notes that the monthly increase in total private construction spending was primarily driven by higher spending on residential improvements. Improvements spending surged 2.7% in October and was 18.5% higher compared to the same period last year.

Spending on single-family construction inched up 0.8% for the month. This marks a continuation of growth after a five-month decline from April to August, aligning with the rising builder confidence. Compared to a year ago, spending on single-family construction was 1.3% higher.

Meanwhile, multifamily construction spending ended its streak of ten consecutive monthly declines, edging up by 0.2% in October. Despite this slight monthly gain, multifamily construction spending remained 6.8% lower compared to a year ago.

Spending on private nonresidential construction was up 3.5% year-over-year. The annual increase was mainly due to higher spending for the class of manufacturing, up $32.9 billion, followed by the power category, up $6.4 billion.