HOUSING STARTS AND BUILDING PERMITS IN JANUARY 1997 PRIVATELY OWNED HOUSING STARTS Privately owned housing starts in January were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,350,000, according to estimates reported today by the U.S. Commerce Department's Bureau of the Census. This is 2 (+/-7) percent above the revised December rate of 1,323,000, but 7 (+/-6) percent below the revised January 1996 rate of 1,444,000. Single-family housing starts in January 1997 were at a rate of 1,108,000; this is 10 (+/-7) percent above the December figure of 1,005,000. The January rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 203,000; this is 24 percent below the December estimate of 268,000. The January rate for units in buildings with two to four units was 39,000. BUILDING PERMITS The seasonally adjusted annual rate of housing units authorized by building permits in January was 1,395,000; this is 2 (+/-2) percent below the revised December rate of 1,422,000, but 1 (+/-2) percent above the January 1996 figure of 1,378,000. Single-family authorizations in January 1997 were at a rate of 1,054,000; this is 4 (+/-1) percent above the December figure of 1,015,000. Authorizations of units in buildings with five units or more were at a rate of 280,000 in January; this is 18 percent below the December estimate of 343,000. The January rate of permit-authorized units in buildings with two to four units was 61,000. MOBILE HOME SHIPMENTS Statistics on mobile home shipments, which lag by 1 month, appear in the Current Construction Reports, series C20. In December, manufacturers' shipments of mobile homes were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 338,000, 5 percent below the November figure of 354,000. The revised December 1995 rate was 370,000. Before seasonal adjustment, total shipments in December 1996 were 22,900. REVISIONS TO SEASONALLY ADJUSTED DATA Seasonally adjusted data are revised annually using the latest available information. The seasonally adjusted estimates of housing starts shown in this release have been revised. Revised monthly data for 1994, 1995, and 1996 are shown in the tables and will appear in the January Current Construction Reports, C20/97-1. In addition, seasonally adjusted statistics for manufacturers' shipments of mobile homes for January 1994 through November 1996 have been revised and will appear in the January report. The next press release is scheduled to be issued on Tuesday, March 18, 1997, at 8:30 A.M. EST. EXPLANATORY NOTES In interpreting changes in the statistics in this release, note that month-to-month changes in seasonally adjusted statistics often show movements which may be irregular. It may take 4 months to establish an underlying trend for total starts, 3 months for building permit authorizations, and 2 months for mobile home shipments. Except for those on mobile home shipments, the statistics in this release are estimated from sample surveys and are subject to sampling variability as well as nonsampling error including bias and variance from response, nonreporting, and undercoverage. Estimated average relative standard errors of preliminary data are shown in the tables. Whenever a statement such as "2 (+/-3) percent above" appears in the text, this indicates the range (-1 to +5 percent) in which the actual percent change is likely to have occurred. All ranges given for percent changes are 90- percent confidence intervals and account only for sampling variability. If a range contains zero, it is uncertain whether there was an increase or decrease; that is, the change is not statistically significant. For any comparison cited without a confidence interval, the change is statistically significant. The January 1997 Current Construction Reports, C20/97-1, will include explanations of confidence intervals and sampling variability. On average, the preliminary seasonally adjusted estimates of total housing starts and building permits are revised about +/-1 percent. Statistics on mobile home shipments are compiled from manufacturers' reports to the National Conference of States on Building Codes and Standards (NCSBCS). Questions regarding these data may be the Manufacturing and Construction Division, Residential Construction Branch, telephone (301)457-4703. NEW PRIVATELY OWNED HOUSING UNITS STARTED BY TYPE OF STRUCTURE: JANUARY 1997 In structures with - 3 and 4 5 units Period Total 1 unit 2 units units or more Seasonally adjusted annual rate 1994(r) January 1,272 1,140 25 107 February 1,337 1,133 32 172 March 1,564 1,306 33 225 April 1,465 1,206 32 227 May 1,526 1,244 36 246 June 1,409 1,193 17 199 July 1,439 1,231 29 179 August 1,450 1,149 47 254 September 1,474 1,201 39 234 October 1,450 1,152 34 264 November 1,511 1,187 57 267 December 1,455 1,151 37 267 1995(r) January 1,383 1,079 44 260 February 1,325 1,063 43 219 March 1,246 991 37 218 April 1,278 1,019 23 236 May 1,309 1,020 35 254 June 1,294 1,025 32 237 July 1,464 1,144 39 281 August 1,404 1,129 31 244 September 1,378 1,110 40 228 October 1,382 1,132 29 221 November 1,451 1,130 30 291 December 1,404 1,129 31 244 1996(r) January 1,444 1,138 22 284 February 1,520 1,188 35 297 March 1,429 1,156 24 249 April 1,522 1,215 55 252 May 1,476 1,142 48 286 June 1,488 1,214 46 228 July 1,492 1,164 44 284 August 1,515 1,222 37 256 September 1,470 1,148 45 277 October 1,407 1,104 58 245 November 1,486 1,133 60 293 December 1,323 1,005 50 268 1997 - JANUARY(p) 1,350 1,108 39 203 AVG. RSE(%) 3 2 12 11 Not seasonally adjusted 1995 1,354.1 1,076.2 14.3 19.4 244.1 1996(r) 1,474.7 1,159.8 16.4 28.8 269.6 AVG. RSE(%) 1 1 7 8 2 1996 - January 90.7 68.9 0.3 0.8 20.6 February 95.9 74.2 0.9 1.1 19.7 March 116.0 96.9 1.0 1.0 17.1 April 146.6 117.9 2.0 3.4 23.3 May 143.9 111.6 1.6 3.0 27.7 June 138.0 115.0 1.6 3.3 18.2 July 137.5 109.1 1.2 3.1 24.2 August 144.2 115.6 1.2 2.0 25.4 September 128.7 99.3 1.9 1.9 25.6 October 130.8 101.0 2.1 2.9 24.8 November(r) 111.5 82.6 1.6 4.3 23.0 December(r) 90.9 67.8 1.1 1.9 20.2 1997 - JANUARY(p) 81.3 66.2 0.7 1.1 13.3 AVG. RSE(%) 3 2 10 19 11 Thousands of units. Detail may not add to total because of rounding. AVG. RSE(%): Annual - Avg. RSE for the last two years. YTD - Avg. RSE for the current period and the same period last year. Monthly - Avg. RSE for the latest six month period (January-June or July-December). (p) Preliminary. (r) Revised. (Z) Less than 50 units or less than 0.5 percent. Source: Construction Reports, Series C20, Housing Starts. The C20 Report is available from the U.S. Government Printing Office. Annual subscription: $21.00. Questions regarding these data may be directed to the Manufacturing and Construction Division, Residential Construction Branch, telephone (301)457-4703. NEW PRIVATELY OWNED HOUSING UNITS STARTED BY REGION: JANUARY 1997 North- Mid- Period Total east west South West Seasonally adjusted annual rate 1994(r) January 1,272 100 250 563 359 February 1,337 130 275 606 326 March 1,564 128 362 672 402 April 1,465 153 359 615 338 May 1,526 137 340 702 347 June 1,409 140 317 622 330 July 1,439 134 332 594 379 August 1,450 149 307 680 314 September 1,474 131 327 645 371 October 1,450 124 320 654 352 November 1,511 176 362 634 339 December 1,455 137 327 643 348 1995(r) January 1,383 128 274 647 334 February 1,325 129 290 568 338 March 1,246 131 271 556 288 April 1,278 106 278 582 312 May 1,309 130 259 577 343 June 1,294 122 293 564 315 July 1,464 115 282 728 339 August 1,404 120 317 632 335 September 1,378 111 305 601 361 October 1,382 122 290 621 349 November 1,451 109 317 694 331 December 1,404 98 307 652 347 1996(r) January 1,444 100 329 621 394 February 1,520 130 317 655 418 March 1,429 139 322 631 337 April 1,522 138 325 665 394 May 1,476 128 322 680 346 June 1,488 126 300 686 376 July 1,492 129 355 670 338 August 1,515 131 337 671 376 September 1,470 140 309 682 339 October 1,407 138 287 617 365 November 1,486 128 330 672 356 December 1,323 135 295 628 265 1997 - JANUARY(p) 1,350 165 256 585 344 AVG. RSE(%) 3 6 7 5 5 Not seasonally adjusted 1995 1,354.1 117.7 290.1 615.0 331.3 1996(r) 1,474.7 131.5 321.3 660.9 360.9 AVG. RSE (%) 1 1 2 2 1 1996 - January 90.7 5.0 14.7 43.8 27.2 February 95.9 6.1 13.8 46.9 29.0 March 116.0 10.0 24.0 54.5 27.4 April 146.6 13.1 31.8 64.3 37.3 May 143.9 12.6 33.6 65.2 32.5 June 138.0 13.4 30.9 58.6 35.1 July 137.5 12.3 34.9 59.2 31.1 August 144.2 12.9 35.3 59.2 36.7 September 128.7 13.0 28.6 57.6 29.5 October 130.8 13.9 29.8 54.0 33.0 November(r) 111.5 10.1 26.6 51.0 23.9 December(r) 90.9 9.1 17.2 46.5 18.1 1997 - JANUARY(p) 81.3 8.0 10.4 39.6 23.3 AVG. RSE (%) 3 6 7 5 5 Thousands of units. Detail may not add to total because of rounding. AVG. RSE(%): Annual - Avg. RSE for the last two years. YTD - Avg. RSE for the current period and the s period last year. Monthly - Avg. RSE for the latest six month period (January-June or July-December). (p) Preliminary. (r) Revised. (Z) Less than 50 units or less than 0.5 percent. Source: Construction Reports, Series C20, Housing Starts. The C20 Report is available from the U.S. Government Printing Office. Annual subscription: $21.00. Questions regarding these data may be directed to the Manufacturing and Construction Division, Residential Construction Branch, telephone (301)457-4703. PRIVATELY OWNED HOUSING UNITS AUTHORIZED BY BUILDING PERMITS IN PERMIT-ISSUING PLACES BY TYPE OF STRUCTURE: JANUARY 1997 In structures with - 3 and 4 5 units Period Total 1 unit 2 units units or more Seasonally adjusted annual rate (19,000 permit-issuing places) 1996 - January 1,378 1,056 65 257 February 1,417 1,087 60 270 March 1,423 1,097 61 265 April 1,459 1,115 75 269 May 1,452 1,098 62 292 June 1,415 1,085 62 268 July 1,457 1,073 68 316 August 1,423 1,078 60 285 September 1,399 1,040 73 286 October 1,362 1,011 69 282 November 1,418 1,025 67 326 December(r) 1,422 1,015 64 343 1997 - JANUARY(p) 1,395 1,054 61 280 AVG. RSE(%) 1 1 3 2 Not seasonally adjusted (19,000 permit-issuing places) 1995 1,332.5 997.3 32.2 31.5 271.5 1996(r) 1,433.7 1,073.3 33.2 32.9 294.2 AVG. RSE(%) (Z) 1 2 3 1 1996 - January 87.3 65.5 2.1 1.9 17.8 February 94.9 73.6 2.1 1.8 17.4 March 119.9 95.1 2.6 2.4 19.6 April 139.4 109.4 3.7 3.4 23.0 May 140.5 109.7 3.0 2.9 24.9 June 130.6 100.7 2.9 3.0 24.0 July 135.7 101.4 3.0 2.9 28.4 August 129.8 98.4 2.9 2.5 26.0 September 121.0 86.0 3.1 3.1 28.8 October 126.0 91.8 3.2 3.9 27.2 November 101.7 71.6 2.6 2.7 24.8 December(r) 99.9 66.3 2.0 2.1 29.6 1997 - JANUARY(p) 88.4 66.1 2.0 1.7 18.6 AVG. RSE(%) 1 1 4 5 2 Not started at end of period - not seasonally adjusted (19,000 permit-issuing places) 1996 - January 137.9 79.7 4.9 53.4 November(r) 121.0 65.7 4.7 50.6 December(r) 128.6 68.6 4.8 55.2 1997 - JANUARY(p) 131.8 70.3 5.3 56.2 AVG. RSE(%) 4 3 10 7 Thousands of units. Detail may not add to total because of rounding. AVG. RSE(%): Annual - Avg. RSE for the last two years. YTD - Avg. RSE for the current period and the same period last year. Monthly - Avg. RSE for the latest six month period (January-June or July-December). (p) Preliminary. (r) Revised. (X) Not applicable. (Z) Less than 50 units or less than 0.5 percent. Source: Construction Reports, Series C20, Housing Starts. The C20 Report is available from the U.S. Government Printing Office. Annual subscription: $21.00. Questions regarding these data may be directed to the Manufacturing and Construction Division, Residential Construction Branch, telephone (301)457-4703. PRIVATELY OWNED HOUSING UNITS AUTHORIZED BY BUILDING PERMITS IN PERMIT-ISSUING PLACES BY REGION: JANUARY 1997 North- Mid- Period Total east west South West Seasonally adjusted annual rate (19,000 permit-issuing places) 1996 - January 1,378 102 312 594 370 February 1,417 122 323 600 372 March 1,423 137 329 591 366 April 1,459 135 342 634 348 May 1,452 137 304 668 343 June 1,415 134 302 634 345 July 1,457 136 338 625 358 August 1,423 147 317 629 330 September 1,399 138 306 604 351 October 1,362 138 298 587 339 November 1,418 135 313 641 329 December(r) 1,422 146 313 642 321 1997 - JANUARY(p) 1,395 145 293 593 364 AVG. RSE(%) 1 1 2 1 1 Not seasonally adjusted (19,000 permit-issuing places) 1995 1,332.5 124.2 296.6 583.2 328.5 1996(r) 1,433.7 138.5 318.9 626.5 349.9 AVG. RSE(%) (Z) 1 1 1 1 1996 - January 87.3 5.5 14.0 44.2 23.5 February 94.9 6.0 16.8 46.0 26.1 March 119.9 10.5 26.4 51.6 31.3 April 139.4 12.9 34.0 60.3 32.2 May 140.5 14.3 32.2 62.1 31.9 June 130.6 13.1 28.7 55.0 33.8 July 135.7 13.5 33.5 54.7 34.0 August 129.8 14.0 30.9 55.2 29.7 September 121.0 11.9 27.9 52.0 29.3 October 126.0 13.8 31.1 50.8 30.3 November 101.7 10.8 23.3 45.3 22.3 December(r) 99.9 9.8 19.1 47.3 23.8 1997 - JANUARY(p) 88.4 8.1 13.1 43.5 23.8 AVG. RSE(%) 1 1 2 1 1 Not started at end of period - not seasonally adjusted (19,000 permit-issuing places) 1996 - January 137.9 18.6 17.5 72.3 29.7 November(r) 121.0 15.7 18.6 66.1 20.7 December(r) 128.6 16.4 17.0 69.4 25.9 1997 - JANUARY(p) 131.8 15.3 19.3 70.6 26.5 AVG. RSE(%) 4 8 10 6 5 Thousands of units. Detail may not add to total because of rounding. AVG. RSE(%): Annual - Avg. RSE for the last two years. YTD - Avg. RSE for the current period and the same period last year. Monthly - Avg. RSE for the latest six month period (January-June or July-December). (p) Preliminary. (r) Revised. (X) Not applicable. (Z) Less than 50 units or less than 0.5 percent. Source: Construction Reports, Series C20, Housing Starts. The C20 Report is available from the U.S. Government Printing Office. Annual subscription: $21.00. Questions regarding these data may be directed to the Manufacturing and Construction Division, Residential Construction Branch, telephone (301)457-4703.