"Housing starts in March jumped to levels not seen since December 2024, reflecting a 10.8% gain compared to the roughly 1.35 million starts in February. Single-family starts rose 8.9% annually and 9.7% month-over-month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.03 million units."
"Permits issued, new housing completions, and units under construction all fell, signaling underlying weakness in the homebuilding market that unnerves homebuilders and mutes new activity. Forecasts call for relatively flat growth or a very modest uptick in housing starts for the whole of 2026."
"The turnaround suggests the February pullback was likely amplified by unfavorable winter weather rather than a clean signal of weakening underlying demand. Severe winter storms and cold weather in late January likely disrupted construction activity in parts of the country."
In March, housing starts rose to their highest level in over a year, reaching an adjusted annual rate of 1.5 million units, a 10.8% increase from February. Single-family starts increased by 8.9% annually, while multifamily starts grew by 15.5%. Despite this surge, other indicators like permits and completions fell, indicating underlying weaknesses in the housing market. Economists predict flat growth for 2026, attributing the March increase partly to weather-related delays in earlier months. The results exceeded expectations but caution remains due to ongoing economic and geopolitical uncertainties.
Read at www.housingwire.com
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