Steel Markets
October 19, 2016
Housing Starts Drop but Permits Surge in September
Written by Sandy Williams
Housing starts dropped to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,047,000 in September, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. The decline was 9 percent below August’s revised estimate and 11.9 percent below the September 2015 rate.
Single family housing starts increased from August by 8.1 percent to 783,000. Starts for apartment housing of five units or more was at an estimated 250,000 units, down 38.9 percent from August’s estimate and 42.5 percent below the year ago level. The Northeast led the drag on starts with a decline of 36.0 percent.
