Western States Lead in Housing Starts

The U.S. Census Dept. reported that privately-owned housing starts in December were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 529,000, 4.3 percent below the revised November estimate of 553,000 and 8.2 percent below the December 2009 rate of 576,000. Single-family housing starts in December were at a rate of 417,000; nine percent below the revised November figure of 458,000. The December rate for buildings with five units or more was 102,000.

Privately-owned housing units authorized by building permits in December were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 635,000, 16.7 percent above the revised November rate of 544,000, but 6.8 percent below the December 2009 estimate of 681,000. Single-family authorizations in December were at a rate of 440,000, 5.5 percent above the revised November figure of 417,000.

New Privately Owned Housing Units Started

(Thousands of units, seasonally adjusted annual rate)

PeriodTotal1 Unit5 Units or moreNortheastMidwestSouthWestDecember, 2010₁ 529 417 102 58 69 262 140 November 2010₂ 553 458 81 77 112 268 96 October 2010₂ 533 433 88 81 94 263 95 September 2010 601 447 148 69 97 301 134 August 2010 614 432 168 75 111 289 139 December 2009 576 486 78 61 94 312 109

1-Preliminary; 2-Revised; Note: Detail may not add to total because of rounding.

Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census