MHProNews has learned from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) figures released by HUD and the Census Bureau indicate total housing starts—single-family and multifamily– rose by seven percent in March, propelled by a 31.1 percent increase in new multifamily construction. As we have reported several times earlier, the rental market is currently very strong and growing. Meanwhile, single-family construction fell 4.8 percent from the previous month, and permit issuance dropped 3.9 percent. NAHB Chief Economist David Crowe, calling it a mixed bag because of the opposite directions of the two markets, says, “The three-month moving average for single-family starts remained unchanged at 628,000 units in March – which is right on pace with NAHB’s forecast for a 25 percent gain in new-home production in 2013.” Regionally, the Midwest, South and the West all gained in single and multifamily housing starts, while the Northeast region fell. Conversely, the Northeast posted a gain in issuance activity, while the other three regions experienced a decline.
