• Single-family Housing Market Stays Hot

    Oct. 1, 2003
    Recent readings on building permits and housing starts indicate that the new housing market is still hot, and is likely to remain so at least for single-family

    Recent readings on building permits and housing starts indicate that the new housing market is still hot, and is likely to remain so — at least for single-family homes.

    In late September, the government reported that builders took out permits for new housing at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.89 million, 5% above the revised July rate and 11% above the August 2002 rate. For the first 8 months of 2003, permits for single-family homes are 7% ahead of the 2002 pace, permits for building in the small (two to four units) category are 8% ahead. permit for large residential buildings (those with five or more units) are 1% below the year-ago level.

    Although housing starts fell 4% in August from an upwardly revised level of 1.89 million units in July, the July number represented a 17-year high. Year-to-date starts are 8% ahead of 2002 in the single-family category, although they are down 19% and 3%, respectively, in the small and large multi-unit categories.