Total Housing Starts Slide -3.6% Year-Over-Year in November 2018 to 1.6 Million Units

Privately‐owned housing starts in November were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,256,000, 3.2% above the revised October estimate of 1,217,000, but -3.6% below the November 2017 rate of 1,303,000.  According to the U.S. Census Bureau, single‐family housing starts in November were at a rate of 824,000, -4.6% below the revised October figure of 864,000.

“Solid job growth and growing household formations should support future demand for housing even as builders continue to address mounting affordability woes,” said Robert Dietz, chief economist for the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). “Builders are doing all they can to hold the line on costs to meet this demand, particularly at the entry-level market.”