U.S. homebuilding increased 22.6% in July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.496 million units, according to www.cnbc.com. The rate was much higher than economists’ expectations of 1.24 million units.
Applications for building permits, a good indication of future activity, rose 18.8% to 1.495 million units.
Single-family starts grew 8.2% to 940,000 units, and multifamily starts increased 56% to a rate of 547,000 units.
This is the third consecutive month of growth for U.S. homebuilding, which is viewed as the latest sign the housing sector is emerging as one of the few strong areas in an economy severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
