U.S. housing starts decline due to drop in single-family home construction

Glonghui, May 21｜In April, new home construction in the United States declined, with single-family housing starts recording the largest drop in nearly a year. Government data released Thursday shows the number of new residential buildings decreased by 2.8% last month, bringing the annualized total down to 1.47 million units. Single-family housing starts fell by 9%, marking the biggest decline since last August, and the annualized number dropped to 930,000 units. However, multi-family housing starts increased by over 10%. The report also shows that single-family building permits—a leading indicator for the construction industry—dropped by 2.6%, reaching the lowest level since August. These figures indicate that residential developers are still focused on digesting the persistently high inventory of new homes. Although sales have risen in recent months, most of those sales involve homes that are already under construction or completed. The path to a sustained recovery in residential construction faces several challenges, including rising mortgage rates, weak consumer confidence, and tight household budgets.