Global| Mar 20 2012U.S. Housing Starts Stutter But Permits Gain
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
Housing starts fell last month by 1.1% (+34.7% y/y) to 698,000 from a revised 706,000 in January, initially reported as 699,000. Expectations had been for 697,000 starts for February. The performance amongst regions was mixed. Starts [...]
Housing starts fell last month by 1.1% (+34.7% y/y) to 698,000 from a revised 706,000 in January, initially reported as 699,000. Expectations had been for 697,000 starts for February. The performance amongst regions was mixed. Starts in the Northeast and the West both fell and reversed most of their January increases. Starts in the Midwest and the South both rose, the latter to a recovery high.
Lower starts of single-family homes accounted for the total's decline. The 9.9% m/m drop to 457,000 erased the gains of the prior two months. Starts in the multi-family area rose 21.1% to 241,000, nearly the highest since September 2008.
Building permits rose 5.1% m/m during February to 717,000. The one-third y/y rise was to the highest since October 2008. Single-family permits rose 4.9% (23.6% y/y). Multi-family permits increased 5.6% and by nearly two-thirds y/y.
The housing starts figures can be found in Haver's USECON database. The expectations figure is contained in the AS1REPNA database.
Foreclosures and the Housing Market is yesterday's House Testimony by Suzanne G. Killian from the Fed's Division of Consumer & Community Affairs. It can be found here.
| Housing Starts (000s, SAAR) | Feb | Jan | Dec | Y/Y % | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 698 | 706 | 681 | 34.7 | 611 | 585 | 554 |
| Single-Family | 457 | 507 | 505 | 17.8 | 434 | 471 | 442 |
| Multi-Family | 241 | 199 | 176 | 85.4 | 177 | 114 | 112 |
| Starts By Region | |||||||
| Northeast | 64 | 73 | 62 | 16.4 | 68 | 72 | 61 |
| Midwest | 103 | 100 | 167 | 63.5 | 103 | 97 | 95 |
| South | 404 | 398 | 327 | 30.3 | 309 | 296 | 281 |
| West | 127 | 135 | 125 | 41.1 | 131 | 120 | 117 |
| Building Permits | 717 | 682 | 671 | 34.3 | 606 | 603 | 582 |
Tom Moeller
AuthorMore in Author Profile »Prior to joining Haver Analytics in 2000, Mr. Moeller worked as the Economist at Chancellor Capital Management from 1985 to 1999. There, he developed comprehensive economic forecasts and interpreted economic data for equity and fixed income portfolio managers. Also at Chancellor, Mr. Moeller worked as an equity analyst and was responsible for researching and rating companies in the economically sensitive automobile and housing industries for investment in Chancellor’s equity portfolio. Prior to joining Chancellor, Mr. Moeller was an Economist at Citibank from 1979 to 1984. He also analyzed pricing behavior in the metals industry for the Council on Wage and Price Stability in Washington, D.C. In 1999, Mr. Moeller received the award for most accurate forecast from the Forecasters' Club of New York. From 1990 to 1992 he was President of the New York Association for Business Economists. Mr. Moeller earned an M.B.A. in Finance from Fordham University, where he graduated in 1987. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from George Washington University.
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