WASHINGTON — U.S. housing starts jumped 18.6 per cent in January, as builders ramped up construction of single-family houses to the fastest pace in eight months.
The Commerce Department says January ground breakings occurred at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.23 million. Home construction rebounded sharply from December, when the annual rate was just 1.04 million.
Most of the new construction came from single-family houses, which were being built at the strongest rate since May 2018. Still, overall housing starts in January were slightly below the 2018 average as the pace of apartment construction slowed.
Permits for construction, an indicator of future activity, improved 1.4 per cent to a seasonally adjusted rate of 1.35 million. The permits suggest additional apartment construction in the coming months, as that segmented accounted for the gains.
Josh Boak, The Associated Press
