U.S. housing starts fall 12.4% as single-family declines

U.S. housing starts fell to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.239 million in July, down 12.4% from the revised June rate of 1.415 million and 13.5% from July 2025,  the U.S. Census Bureau and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development reported.

The July rate was the second-lowest monthly level of 2026, above May's 1.182 million. Starts reached 1.522 million in March, then fell to 1.414 million in April and 1.182 million in May before rising to 1.415 million in June.

Single-family starts fell to 808 thousand in July from 897 thousand in June, down 9.9%. They were down 15.7% from July 2025. Through July, single-family starts were down 6.9% from the same period in 2025.

Starts in buildings with five or more units fell to 421 thousand in July from 499 thousand in June, down 15.6%. Through July, starts in buildings with five or more units rose 11.9% from the same period in 2025.

Building permits moved higher in July. Privately owned housing units authorized by permits reached a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.443 million, up 5.0% from June and 3.1% from July 2025. Single-family authorizations rose 2.5% from June to 894 thousand, while authorizations for units in buildings with five or more units reached 490 thousand.

The number of authorized housing units not yet started rose to 279 thousand in July from 268 thousand in June, up 4.1%. The July level was 10.3% above July 2025.

Units under construction stood at 1.262 million in July, down 0.2% from June and 6.0% from July 2025. Single-family units under construction fell 1.2% from June to 579 thousand, while units in buildings with five or more units rose 0.8% to 666 thousand.

Housing completions fell to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.212 million in July, down 9.1% from June and 16.8% from July 2025. Single-family completions fell 5.8% from June to 878 thousand and were down 12.8% from July 2025.

The July data show declines in both single-family starts and starts in buildings with five or more units from June, while year-to-date single-family starts fell 6.9% and starts in buildings with five or more units rose 11.9%.