US single-family housing starts tumble in October

Source: Reuters

U.S. single-family homebuilding tumbled in October as Hurricanes Helene and Milton depressed activity in the South and permits rose slightly, suggesting that a rebound was likely to be muted by higher mortgage rates.

Single-family housing starts, which account for the bulk of homebuilding, plunged 6.9% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 970,000 units last month, the Commerce Department's Census Bureau said on Tuesday. Data for September was revised higher to show homebuilding rising to a rate of 1.042 million units from the previously reported pace of 1.027 million units.

Single-family starts dropped 10.2% in the South.

Mortgage rates initially fell as the Federal Reserve started cutting interest rates in September. They have, however, erased that decline on strong economic data and concerns that President-elect Donald Trump's policies, including tariffs on imported goods and mass deportations of migrants, could reignite inflation.

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/us-single-family-housing-starts-tumble-october-2024-11-19/