Housing starts rose 1.6% to a rate of 1.361 million units in April after falling in March, according to Reuters.
Applications for building permits, a good indication of future activity, fell 4.7% to 1.412 million units in April.
Single-family housing starts fell 2.1% to a rate of 927,000 units, hitting a nine-month low. Multifamily starts increased 13% at a rate of 420,000 units. Building permits for single-family homes fell 5.1% to a rate of 922,000 units, and permits for multifamily homes fell 3% to a rate of 431,000 units.
The completions rate for the single-family housing segment fell 8% to 943,000.
