Lack Of Multifamily Starts A Sign That Millennials Are Looking To Homeownership?
New-home construction unexpectedly dropped in September and multifamily led the way in the decline, yet a growth in permits shows single-family housing is on the way up.
Residential starts fell 9% to a 1.05 million annualized rate, according to a Commerce Department report. That’s the lowest level since March 2015, yet at the same time permit issuance increased 6.3%, Bloomberg reports.
The fact permits are growing at the same time multifamily starts are falling is a signal that Millennials are finally beginning to move out of apartments and into single-family homes, says First American Financial chief economist Mark Fleming. And while the fall in multifamily, the largest driver of growth in recent years, may be bad news for the short term, the jump in permits suggests future construction is set to increase. [Bloomberg]
