MAY HOUSING STARTS 975k, PERMITS 969k
Housing Starts fell 3.3% to a 975k annual rate in May, below expectations of 980k and below April’s upward blip of 1.008mln (which was downwardly revised from the 1.032mln originally reported).
Building Permits were authorized at a 969k annual rate, above consensus estimates but down 1.3% from the 982k permits reported last month (initially reported as 978k).
Housing starts were down 32.1% from May-07, while Permits were 36.3% lower on an annual basis.
Single-family homes were started at 674k annual pace, the lowest since Jan-91, while single-family permits were issued at a 623k rate. Single-family permits in the Northeast were 58k, the lowest on record.
Multi-family units, which have been less susceptible to the housing meltdown, were started at a 280k pace, down from April’s 313k rate. Multi-family permits were 314k.
Meanwhile, housing completions rose 11.6% to 1.132mln units after registering 1.014mln in April. Housing completions were still 27% below year-ago levels.