July building permits on fast track with best performance in four years

Aug. 16, 2012
While the most recent housing data from the U.S. Census Dept. says housing starts were down 1.1% in July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 746,000 units, new building permits, which can be an indicator of future building activity, rose 6.8 percent ...

While the most recent housing data from the U.S. Census Dept. says housing starts were down 1.1% in July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 746,000 units, new building permits, which can be an indicator of future building activity, rose 6.8 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 812,000 units in July – the fastest pace in nearly four years.

Single-family permits rose 4.5 percent to 513,000 units (their best pace since March of 2010) while multi-family permits rose 11.2 percent to 299,000 units. Permit issuance rose in three out of four regions in July, with the Northeast registering a 12.2 percent gain, the South a 5.8 percent gain and the West a 14.0 percent gain. The Midwest posted a 4.2 percent decline.

In a press statement issued by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), Washington, D.C., Barry Rutenberg, NAHB chairman and a home builder from Gainesville, Fla., said, “While many builders believe that the outlook for housing is considerably brighter than it has been in years, we are being very careful about keeping inventories tight and not building ahead of demand. At the same time, builders are drawing more permits for new construction so we can accommodate buyers and renters as they return to the marketplace.”

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