Housing starts shot higher by 9.3% in November, according to Commerce Department data, climbing to the highest level of the year.
On a seasonally adjusted basis, starts increased to 685,000 from 627,000 for October, which was revised downward 1,000. November housing starts are up 24.3% from 551,000 a year earlier.
Analysts polled by Econoday expected housing starts to come in at 636,000 for November with a range of estimates between 600,000 and 650,000.
In a joint release, the Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development said single-family starts rose 2.3% last month to a seasonally adjusted rate of 447,000 units, up from a revised 428,000 for October.
Starts dropped 22.5% in February, which was the largest monthly decline since March 1984, but picked up momentum throughout the summer. November’s rate is the highest since April 2010.
Building permits in November climbed 5.7% to an annual rate of 681,000, up from a revised 644,000 for the prior month and nearly 21% higher than 564,000 a year earlier.
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