Nation's Building News Online

Housing Construction in 2003 Hits the Highest Level in 25 Years

The pace of new home construction continued to intensify in December, bringing total production for 2003 to 1.848 million units, an 8.4% increase over 2002 and the highest level in 25 years, the Commerce Department reported last week.

Last month’s housing starts climbed 1.7% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 2.088 million units.

“Builders completed an extraordinary year and remain upbeat about the strength of the market for the year ahead,” said 2003 NAHB President Kent Conine, as they continue to meet “a robust demand fueled by low interest rates and solid house-price performance.”

Single-family starts increased 13.6% in 2003 over the preceding year to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.664 million units. This was only 0.6% below the all-time high that was reached in November.

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December’s yearly rate of multifamily home building was 424,000 units, 20.1% above the pace of a year earlier and 11.6% above November’s pace.

“Housing’s strength in 2003 was concentrated in single-family starts, while condominiums in multifamily structures gained ground as the year progressed,” said NAHB Chief Economist David Seiders. “As a result, the homeownership rate rose to record levels in 2003.”

Home building was down in the Northeast and Midwest in December, while the South and West posted gains. For the year as a whole, production was up 3.8% in the Northeast, 6.6% in the Midwest, 7.2% in the South and 13.9% in the West.
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