By Maria Martinez
Construction of new homes in the U.S. fell in July following two consecutive increases, according to data from the Commerce Department released Wednesday. Here are the main takeaways from the report:
--Housing starts, a measure of U.S. homebuilding, fell 7.0% in July compared with June, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.534 million. The reading is below the consensus forecast from The Wall Street Journal poll of economists, who expected starts to fall 3.2% to an annual pace of 1.59 million.
--The current level of starts is up 2.5% compared with the same month a year earlier.
--In June, housing starts came in at a revised 1.650 million from an earlier estimate of 1.643 million.
--Monthly housing starts data are volatile and are often revised. July data came with a margin of error of 8.9 percentage points.
--Residential permits, which can be a bellwether for future home construction, rose 2.6% in July compared with June, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.635 million. The figure beats economists' forecasts of a 0.8% rise to an annual pace of 1.61 million.
--U.S. housing starts report for July compares with August's indicator compiled by the National Association of Home Builders, which showed confidence in the single-family housing market falling to its lowest level since July 2020.
--Housing rebounded strongly during the Covid-19 pandemic, lifted by shifting consumer demand in search for more space and low mortgage rates. However, inventory shortages and high input costs in recent months are lifting house prices, a constraint for both builders and buyers, economists say.
Write to Maria Martinez at maria.martinez@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
08-18-21 0900ET
