(Sharecast News) - US building permits and housing starts both strengthened in December, according to fresh figures from the Census Bureau, pointing to a firmer end to the year for residential construction despite ongoing regional divergences.
Building permits rose 4.3% month‑on‑month to an annualised rate of 1.44m, ahead of expectations for 1.40m, driven by an 18.1% jump in permits for buildings with five units or more, which climbed to 515,000. Single‑family permits slipped 1.7% to 881,000.
Regionally, permits rose sharply in the Northeast, up 44.1% to 147,000, and also increased in the Midwest and West, while the South saw a 4.1% decline to 716,000.
Housing starts also advanced, rising 6.2% on the month to 1.40m, up from 1.32m in November and comfortably ahead of forecasts of 1.33m to mark a second consecutive monthly gain and the strongest pace since July, extending the rebound from October's 15‑month low.
Single‑family starts were up 4.1% at 981,000, the fastest rate since February, while multi‑family starts jumped 10.1% to a three‑month high of 402,000.
Activity surged 37.4% in the West and also increased in the Northeast and Midwest, though starts fell 2.8% in the South to 741,000.
For the year as a whole, an estimated 1.36m housing units were started in 2025, down 0.6% from 2024.
Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com