Economic Notes: National Housing Activity for July 2009
8/18/2009
By Patrick O'Keefe, Director of Economic Research, J.H. Cohn
After rising for two months, national housing activity slowed slightly in July, as builders started construction on fewer new homes and obtained a smaller number of permits for future construction, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
The declines were attributable to reductions in the construction of multifamily structures.
The decline in starts was most pronounced in the Northeast, where construction on new units was down 16.3% from June’s level (m/m). And the Northeast’s decline was entirely in multifamily starts which dropped by two-thirds m/m, while single family activity rose by 14%.
Permits
authorizing future construction were down most sharply in the South, due to a steep drop in multifamily authorizations. The Northeast also saw a drop in permits due to declining approvals of multifamily residential structures.
Weakening multifamily activity largely reflects financing constraints that developers face as banks and other lenders continue to curtail construction lending.
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