Housing Starts Fall

Single family housing starts fell 4% in August but construction activity still remains very robust.The U.S. Commerce Department reported that housing starts fell from a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.54 million in July to 1.48 million in August. The July number was revised upward from 1.52 million, which was considered the best month for starts in 17 years. So far, it appears the rise in mortgage rates this summer has not even dented demand for new homes, and single-family permits rose by 2.3% in August. "We were expecting some decline, but the numbers are surprisingly strong," said National Association of Home Builders economist Michael Carliner. The government also reported that multifamily starts fell 4% in August to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 308,000.