U.S. Census Bureau: Monthly New Residential Construction, February 2023

The U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development jointly announced the following new residential construction statistics for February 2023:

Building Permits

Privately-owned housing units authorized by building permits in February were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,524,000. This is 13.8 percent above the revised January rate of 1,339,000, but is 17.9 percent below the February 2022 rate of 1,857,000. Single-family authorizations in February were at a rate of 777,000; this is 7.6 percent above the revised January figure of 722,000. Authorizations of units in buildings with five units or more were at a rate of 700,000 in February.

Housing Starts

Privately-owned housing starts in February were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,450,000. This is 9.8 percent (±15.5 percent)* above the revised January estimate of 1,321,000, but is 18.4 percent (±8.9 percent) below the February 2022 rate of 1,777,000. Single-family housing starts in February were at a rate of 830,000; this is 1.1 percent (±13.9 percent)* above the revised January figure of 821,000. The February rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 608,000.

Housing Completions

Privately-owned housing completions in February were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,557,000. This is 12.2 percent (±15.0 percent)* above the revised January estimate of 1,388,000 and is 12.8 percent (±16.2 percent)* above the February 2022 rate of 1,380,000. Single-family housing completions in February were at a rate of 1,037,000; this is 1.0 percent (±15.0 percent)* above the revised January rate of 1,027,000. The February rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 509,000.

The March report is scheduled for release on April 18, 2023. View the full schedule in the Economic Briefing Room: www.census.gov/economic-indicators .  The full text and tables for this release can be found at https://www.census.gov/construction/nrc/index.html.

The original report can be read here.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau