U.S. Census Bureau: Monthly New Residential Construction, February 2024

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 2025:

Building Permits

Privately-owned housing units authorized by building permits in February were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,456,000. This is 1.2 percent below the revised January rate of 1,473,000 and is 6.8 percent below the February 2024 rate of 1,563,000. Single-family authorizations in February were at a rate of 992,000; this is 0.2 percent below the revised January figure of 994,000. Authorizations of units in buildings with five units or more were at a rate of 404,000 in February.

Housing Starts

Privately-owned housing starts in February were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,501,000. This is 11.2 percent (±15.7 percent)* above the revised January estimate of 1,350,000, but is 2.9 percent (±13.0 percent)* below the February 2024 rate of 1,546,000. Single-family housing starts in February were at a rate of 1,108,000; this is 11.4 percent (±19.7 percent)* above the revised January figure of 995,000. The February rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 370,000.

Housing Completions

Privately-owned housing completions in February were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,592,000. This is 4.0 percent (±15.9 percent)* below the revised January estimate of 1,659,000 and is 6.2 percent (±15.5 percent)* below the February 2024 rate of 1,698,000. Single-family housing completions in February were at a rate of 1,066,000; this is 7.1 percent (±13.3 percent)* above the revised January rate of 995,000. The February rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 512,000.

The March report is scheduled for release on April 17, 2025. 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 <www.census.gov/construction/nrc/>.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau