What's up with the United States Real Estate Market? : Building Permits & Housing Starts 2007

This is an update on our previous post on the Housing Starts & Building Permits for the United States Market. We updated the numbers on the three previous months of June,July  & August.

What is this post about:

Housing starts- are a measure of the number of residential units on which construction is begun each month. A start in construction is defined as the beginning of excavation of the foundation for the building and is comprised primarily of residential housing.

Building Permits- are permits taken out in order to allow excavation. 

(Excerpts from briefing.com)

How can this post help me: There is a saying ' The Apple Does Not Fall Far From The Tree' This information is for those of you who want to know the 'Big Picture' on the Real Estate Market. You might say to me, 'But Ian I just want to know about the Reno-Sparks Market, aren't markets better judged locally?'

Yes, markets are indeed better judged locally. But it is also good to know what is happening in the bigger market (United States). This has a few advantages. This can be a good source of knowing what the future holds .

1) If they are not building as much homes then maybe the builders don't see much demand in the near future.

2) Or if the statistics say that they are building  at a rapid pace there is reason to assume that the future looks better(there is a strong demand) thereby giving us more confidence in our investing decisions.

Housing Starts 2007 (Thousands)

• Jan-1408K
• Feb- 1525K
• Mar- 1518K
• Apr- 1528K
• May- 1474K
• Jun-  1468K
• Jul-    1367K
• Aug-  1331K

Building Permits 2007 (Thousands)

• Jan- 1568K
• Feb- 1532K
• Mar- 1544K
• Apr- 1429K
• May- 1501K
• Jun-  1413K
• Jul-    1389K
• Aug-  1307K

Highlights:

• We are in a 12-year low for both starts & permits.
• The National Association of Realtors expects the bottom in mid 2008
     

Additional Resources:

• census.gov
• briefing.com economic calendar
• Renohomeblog.com 2006 Housing Starts/Building Permits graphs
• Renohomeblog.com 2005 Housing Starts/Building Permits Graphs
• wikipedia.com 'what is a housing start?'
• wikipedia.com 'what is a Construction/Building Permit?'