Single-Family home building at 16-year low

from Lexington Herald-Leader 11/21/07

The Commerce Department reported yesterday that total housing construction rose 3 percent in October to a seasonally adjusted rate of 1.229 million units. But all the strength occurred in a hefty rebound in apartment construction, which is extremely volatile. The bigger single-family sector actually fell 7.3 percent to an annual rate of 884,000 units, the slowest pace since October 1991. Applications for building permits fell for a fifth straight month. The rebound in overall construction in October reflected gains in all regions of the country except the South, where building activity fell 4.6 percent. Construction rose 21.1 percent in the Midwest, 8.5 percent in the Northeast and 5.8 percent in the West.