Housing starts in
April dipped 30.5% from the same month last year to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of
1.03 million units,
according to the most recent figures from the
Census Bureau. However, that figure was
up 8.2% from March's pace.
Single family starts remained mired in the doldrums,
down 42.1% from last April's pace at a rate of
692,000 units.
Through the
first four months of 2008, some
321,000 homes had been started across the country,
down 29.8% from the same period of 2007.
Permits in
April were
down 32.9% from the same month last year to a rate of
978,000 units.
Single family permits for the month were
down 39.9% from April, 2007 to a rate of
646,000 permits per year.
Through the end of April, just under
320,000 permits had been issued,
down 35,1% from the
first four months last year.
In separate news,
builders remained downbeat in May, as the
National Association of Home Builders' Builder Confidence Index dipped to one of its lowest points ever. “Despite the Federal Reserve’s concerted efforts to
lower short-term interest rates, free up credit markets and shore up the national economy,
the housing market has shown no evidence of improvement thus far. In fact,
conditions have continued to deteriorate in recent times,”
says NAHB
Chief Economist David Seiders. “The latest HMI shows that even
fewer builders now foresee market conditions improving over the next six months compared with our April survey, and builder ratings of buyer traffic through model homes also have dropped off over the past month on a seasonally adjusted basis. This certainly adds fuel to the argument that
targeted policy stimulus, in the form of a temporary tax credit for home buyers, is
essential to halt the housing downswing and remove the heavy drag being exerted by housing on overall economic growth.”
