Housing starts rise 14.6% to five-month high

Marketwatch ^ | 7.19.11 | Greg Robb

[Free Vulcan]

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — U.S. home builders sharply increased construction in June, according to estimates released Tuesday by the Commerce Department.

Housing starts rose 14.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 629,000, the highest level since January, the data showed.

Details underlying the June figures were also strong. There was a large increase in starts of multifamily units and a smaller gain in starts of single-family homes, the department reported.

Analysts said this will be the new trend in home building as there are more renters than buyers in the market.

The report was much better than expected. Economists surveyed by MarketWatch had been looking for a 3.6% increase to 580,000. May’s starts were revised lower to a 549,000 rate from 560,000 previously estimated, however.

[Free Vulcan]

Throwing out the fact of this rise comes against a long decline in housing, the real detail is that the increase is due to building for renters, not owners, which blunts the gains, as does May's downward revision.

[Tulane]

I am an attorney and I represent multifamily residential developers (apartment communities). This is no indication of a strengthening national economy. The starts are mainly in Texas, and it is in cities like Houston and Dallas that are growing in jobs - and for the first time in decades - are short on product due to almost 3 years of no development. These deals have been in the pipeline for at least 2 years.

The rest of the country is stagnant.

[the invisib1e hand]

so what. it’s illegal to be middle class anymore. The only people who benefit from “good news” are shareholders and Mexicans.

[all the best]

Now this really is unexpected.

[OCCASparky]

High for recently, totally anemic compared to five years ago.

[Proud2BeRight]

Does this count rebuilding tornado areas and trailer parks?

[11th Commandment]

Agreed, don't confuse pent up demand with economic recovery. Many CEO’s made thsi mistake in early 2010 and over invested in inventory.

[dblshot]

I was going to say the same thing with a comment on all the blue state jobless moving to red states to go to work,

[SouthTexas]

More inventory injected into an over supplied market.

If you build it, they will come (to Texas anyway).

[Buckeye McFrog]

I actually take this as very bad news.

If such an increase really did occur in current conditions, it only means that the Government is goosing the system again, which can only come back to bite us harder further on down the road.

[Rational Thought]

Loved this little nugget....

New home completions fell 1.7 percent to 535,000 units in June

[TWhiteBear]

So there were more housing starts in June than there were in January. June, when the general trend is warm and dry as opposed to January when it is snowy and cold. Damm, whoda thunk?
Just another Libtard propaganda stool in the bowl.
TWB

[familyop]

"U.S. home builders sharply increased construction in June, according to estimates released Tuesday by the Commerce Department."

News before the "unexpected."

[Free Vulcan]

This is why I have often said as I post the economic releases that I watch the private indexes and statistics more closely, as they are ‘adjusted’ far less than the official govt stats.

Zogby didn’t invent the special sauce - he stole it from the statisticians in the fed govt and then watered it down from industrial strength to get his numbers.

[TheOldLady]

Boop His Nose But Be Careful!!

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