Construction of new homes weakened in February as high costs for lumber and other material hindered new-home construction, according to a March 17 report. Housing starts – both single-family and multifamily building – fell 10.3% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.42 million units in February. Despite headwinds, economists said permits for single-family homes are up 36% over the last 12 months. Cost and availability of building materials – rather than a decline in demand for new homes – are the cause of projects not moving forward. Single-family starts for the first two months of 2021 remain 6.4% higher than the first two months of 2020.
Source: REALTOR Magazine