An estimated 1.06 million housing units were completed in 2016, a 9.7 percent year-over-year increase compared with the 2015 estimate of 968,000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Privately-owned housing starts in December 2016 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.22 million, an 11.3 percent increase compared with the November rate of 1.1 million and a 5.7 percent increase compared with the December 2015 rate of 1.16 million.
Single-family housing starts in December were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 795,000, a 4 percent decline compared with the November rate of 828,000. Multi-family starts rose 57 percent to 431,000 units.
“Despite the slight dip in single-family production, December’s rate is still the fourth highest single-family pace since the Great Recession, and single-family starts also posted solid gains for the year,” said Granger MacDonald, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders, in a statement.
