US housing starts and building permits mixed

Privately-owned housing units authorized by building permits in December were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,210,000. This is 0.2 percent below the revised November rate of 1,212,000, but is 0.7 percent above the December 2015 estimate of 1,201,000.

Single-family authorizations in December were at a rate of 817,000; this is 4.7 percent above the revised November figure of 780,000. Authorizations of units in buildings with five units or more were at a rate of 355,000 in December. An estimated 1,186,900 housing units were authorized by building permits in 2016. This is 0.4 percent above the 2015 figure of 1,182,600.

Privately-owned housing starts in December were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,226,000. This is 11.3 percent (±10.4%) above the revised November rate of 1,102,000 and is 5.7 percent above the December 2015 rate of 1,160,000.

Single-family housing starts in December were at a rate of 795,000; this is 4.0 percent below the revised November figure of 828,000. The December rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 417,000. An estimated 1,166,400 housing units were started in 2016. This is 4.9 percent above the 2015 figure of 1,111,800.