Single-family housing starts rose 2% to 438,000 units on an annualized basis during August, but multifamily construction soared by 53% during the month, according to new government figures released Tuesday morning.
The comparison – based on figures compiled by the U.S. Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development -- is to the same month a year ago.
In the multifamily space builders broke ground on 147,000 units (annualized) compared to 103,000 in July and just 96,000 in August of 2009.
The figures suggest that builders believe American consumers may be shifting to rentals as opposed to home ownership, despite historically low mortgage rates and falling home prices.
Total housing starts (encompassing single- and multifamily) rose 10.5% in August on a sequential basis to 598,000 units. Compared to the same month a year earlier total starts rose 2%.
Single-unit starts rose slightly from July but fell 9% compared to August 2009.
The improvement in starts comes a day after the National Association of Home Builders said builder confidence in housing remains low with the trade group's chief economist David Crowe declaring, "The stall in the nation's housing market continues."
