Housing Starts Soar To 6-Month High In January… Or Do They?
February 19th, 2010 categories: Buyers, Housing Starts, Market Trends, Statistics
Sometimes, headlines for housing can be misleading and this week gave us a terrific example.
On Wednesday, the Commerce Department released its Housing Starts data for January 2010. The data showed starts at a 6-month high.
A “Housing Start” is a privately-owned home on which construction has started.
Headlines on the Housing Starts story included:
- U.S. Housing Starts Hit 6-Month High (Reuters)
- U.S. Economy Receives Home Building Boost (Shepparton)
- Housing Starts Post Sharp Rebound (ABC)
Based to the headlines, the housing market looks poised for rapid growth through the Spring Market.
The real story, though, is that although Housing Starts increased by close to 3 percent last month, the growth is mostly attributed to buildings with 5 or more units. This includes apartments and condominiums — a sector of the housing market that’s notoriously volatile.
If we isolate Housing Starts for single-family homes only, we see that starts grew by just 7,000 units last month and have failed to break a range since June 2009. January’s tally is slightly below the 8-month average.
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