Building Permits Jump 6.9% in August

New residential building permits jumped to their fastest pace in almost a year according to the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. In August, building permits reached a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.543 million, surpassing the forecasted 1.440 million. This marks a 6.9% increase from July but reflects a 2.7% decrease compared to the same period last year.

Here is the opening of this morning's monthly report:

Privately‐owned housing units authorized by building permits in August were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,543,000. This is 6.9 percent above the revised July rate of 1,443,000, but is 2.7 percent below the August 2022 rate of 1,586,000. Single‐family authorizations in August were at a rate of 949,000; this is 2.0 percent above the revised July figure of 930,000. Authorizations of units in buildings with five units or more were at a rate of 535,000 in August. [link to report]