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Housing Starts Drop in Snowy February
Housing starts declined in February as winter snowstorms stalled activity in the Northeast and South. The Commerce Department said construction of new homes and apartments fell 5.9% in February to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 575,000 units. However, starts were up 0.2% from February 2009. Also, January activity was upwardly revised to a pace of 622,000 units, the strongest showing in 14 months. The February results reflected a modest 0.6% dip in single-family construction, while the more volatile multi-family sector plunged 30.3% after having surged 18.5% in January. Activity dropped by 9.6% in the Northeast and 15.5% in the South, two regions hammered by blizzards in February. Housing starts jumped 10.6% in the Midwest and 7.9% out West. Moreover, building permits, considered a barometer of future activity, fell 1.6% after having fallen a larger 4.7% in January. Homebuilders, who are struggling to recover from the severe housing downturn that accompanied the recession, are hoping home sales pick up before government tax credits expire at the end of April.
Separately, The National Association of Home Builders reported that its survey of builder sentiment dropped by two points to 15 in March, signaling pessimism about the prospects for a solid near term housing recovery. Builders said harsh winter weather and the competition from deeply discounted foreclosures were dampening sales prospects. They said they were seeing fewer prospective buyers and were feeling less optimistic about the likelihood of sales over the next six months, according to the NAHB survey.
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Date Last Updated: 03/17/2010
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