Single-family housing starts in April were at a rate of 927,000, according to new data from the US Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. This is 2.1% below the revised March figure of 947,000.
Privately-owned housing starts in April were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.36 million, which is 1.6% above the revised March estimate of 1.33 million but also 1.7% below the April 2024 rate of 1.38 million.
Single family authorizations in April were at a rate of 922,000, which is 5.1% below the revised March figure of 972,000. Privately-owned housing units authorized by building permits in April were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.41 million, which is 4.7% below the revised March rate of 1.48 million and 3.2% below the April 2024 rate of 1.45 million.
Single-family housing completions in April were at a rate of 943,000, down 8% from the revised March rate of 1.02 million. Privately-owned housing completions in April were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.45 million, a 5.9% drop from the revised March estimate of 1.54 million and down 12.3% from the April 2024 rate of 1.66 million.
Separately, the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) reported mortgage applications for new home purchases in April were up by 2% from March and up by 5.3% from April 2024. By product type, conventional loans composed 46.4% while FHA loans composed 39.2%. The average loan size for new homes decreased from $381,921 in March to $376,992 in April.
“Despite the ongoing economic uncertainty and mortgage rate volatility, April was a strong month for new home purchase activity, with applications posting an annual gain for the second straight month,” said Joel Kan, MBA’s vice president and deputy chief economist. “The applications index reached its highest level in the survey’s history dating back to 2012. Additionally, MBA’s estimate of new home sales also increased over the month to a 718,000 seasonally adjusted annualized pace, its strongest pace since October 2024. As the unsold inventory of new homes continues to grow in many parts of the country, reduced buyer competition and pricing pressures supported more buying activity over the month.”
