New home construction fell to an 18-month low in October, according to a recent government report.
Housing starts, or the number of new homes being built, fell 11.7% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 519,000 in October, down from a revised 588,000 in September. The annual rate is the lowest since the 477,000 starts reported for April 2009.
Economists were expecting a rate of 600,000 housing starts, according to a consensus estimate from Briefing.com.
Housing starts have fluctuated between high 400,000s and high 600,000s since late 2008, but that range is a sharp decline from historical averages, and a marked drop from rates that hit in excess of 2,000,000 at the peak of the housing boom.
October’s rate of 519,000 is the third lowest recorded since Jan. 1959. Much of the weakness stems from lower numbers in the multi-family home construction.
Permits for future construction rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 550,000 last month, 0.5% above the revised rate of 547,000 in September, but fell short of expectations.
While the rate did increase, economists were expecting 570,000 permits in October.