US homebuilding slows in May as starts tumble 15pc, permits edge lower

16th Jun 2026 12:06

(Sharecast News) - US housing starts and building permits both softened in May, according to the Census Bureau, pointing to a cooler pace of homebuilding activity.

Housing starts dropped 15.4% to an annual rate of 1.17m, well below April's revised 1.39m reading and down 8.7% year-on-year. Single‑family starts slipped to 882,000, while construction of larger multi‑unit buildings fell to 284,000.

Building permits, a forward‑looking indicator, also eased, dipping 0.7% to 1.41m, with overall authorisations slightly below last year's level, though single‑family permits edged up to 886,000.

Permits for buildings with five units or more came in at 474,000, suggesting continued caution among developers despite pockets of resilience in the single‑family segment.

Housing completions also weakened in May, falling 8.1% to an annual rate of 1.31m, down from April's revised 1.42m print and 14.2% lower than at the same time a year earlier, underscoring the broader slowdown across the homebuilding sector.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com