Housing starts declined 5.5% to 1.277 million units in May, according to Reuters.
Applications for building permits, a good indication of future activity, fell 3.8% to 1.386 million units in May.
Single-family housing starts fell 5.2% to a rate of 982,000 units. Multifamily starts decreased 13.7% to a rate of 278,000 units. Building permits for single-family homes fell 2.9% to a rate of 949,000 units, and permits for multifamily homes fell 6.1% at a rate of 382,000 units.
The average rate on the popular 30-year fixed mortgage has continued to pull back after exceeding 7% again in April and May; it eased to 6.95% during the week of June 10.
