Mild Temperatures and Housing Shortage Push U.S. Housing Starts and Permits Higher

By: Tomas Ronolski - AllPennyStocks.com News

Friday, March 22, 2024

Higher mortgage rates couldn’t stop a sharp rebound in two key U.S. indicators last month. Single-family housing starts, housing completions and building permits all spiked in February due to milder-than-normal temperatures and a continued shortage of previously-owned homes for sale.

Privately‐owned housing starts surged 10.7 percent over January’s revised estimate and rose 5.9 percent from last year. Single‐family housing starts gained 11.6 percent for the month. Housing completions during the month spiked 19.7 percent, driven by single family homes

Building Permits measure the current demand in the real estate market and estimate the future performance of the construction industry. In February, privately owned housing units authorized by building permits rose 1.9 percent above the revised January rate and advanced 2.4 percent above the February 2023 rate.

At the FOMC meeting this week, policymakers left interest rate policy unchanged. However, expectations continue for three rate cuts this year, fueling a bullish outlook for the residential construction sector.

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