Nationwide housing starts and building permits stalled in May following the expiration of the federal home buyer tax credit program, according to the U.S. Commerce Department. New-home production declined 10 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 593,000 units, the slowest pace since December 2009, while permit issuance slowed 5.9 percent to a rate of 574,000 units, its slowest pace since May 2009.
The decline in housing starts in May was entirely on the single-family side, where the government's tax credits for first-time and repeat buyers had the greatest impact in the previous months. In that segment, starts fell 17.2 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 468,000 units, their slowest pace since May of 2009.
New Privately Owned Housing Units Started
(Thousands of units, seasonally adjusted annual rate)
| Period | Total | 1 Unit | 5 Units or more | Northeast | Midwest | South | West |
|---|
| May 20101 | 593 | 468 | 112 | 75 | 107 | 288 | 123 |
| April 20102 | 659 | 565 | 81 | 80 | 102 | 366 | 111 |
| March 20102 | 634 | 535 | 91 | 66 | 93 | 339 | 136 |
| February 2010 | 605 | 527 | 62 | 72 | 105 | 285 | 143 |
| January 2010 | 612 | 511 | 94 | 70 | 91 | 326 | 125 |
| May 2009 | 550 | 406 | 135 | 60 | 79 | 275 | 136 |
1-Preliminary; 2-Revised; Note: Detail may not add to total because of rounding.
Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census