Home construction starts rose for a fourth-straight month in December to the best pace since late 2006 as builders responded to the robust demand for single-family housing.
Residential starts climbed by 5.8% to a 1.67 million annualized rate, according to government data released Thursday. That topped all estimates in a Bloomberg survey of economists that had a median forecast of 1.56 million and compared with an
The figures are the latest sign of the housing market’s strong rebound. The Federal Reserve’s ultra-easy monetary policy has helped push mortgage rates to record lows that are attracting more potential home buyers and underpinning historically strong demand.
The full year saw a total of 1.38 million starts, with single-family construction climbing to 991,200, both the highest since the mid-2000s, according to the report, which is published jointly by the Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Meanwhile applications to build, a proxy for future construction, increased 4.5% in December to a 1.71 million annualized rate that was also the best since 2006.
The pandemic has also driven a surge in demand for larger properties with more space for families to work and learn at home. With lean inventories, builders have been rushing to meet demand. A measure of homebuilder sentiment eased in January, but remains near a recent record.
The report showed single-family starts climbed 12% to a 1.34 million pace, another post-2006 high. Multifamily starts, which tend to be volatile and include apartment buildings and condominiums, eased to 331,000.
While housing has been strong, the labor market has struggled to recover. A separate government report showed Thursday that initial filings for state unemployment benefits fell only slightly last week and remained elevated at 900,000 in the week ended Jan. 16.
