Housing starts fell 12.4% in July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.24 million units, a 13.5% year-over-year decrease, according to the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Single-family starts declined 9.9% from the revised June figure to an 808,000-unit annual rate.
In its analysis of the report, the National Association of Home Builders attributed the 15.7% year-over-year decline and 6.9% year-to-date decline in single-family starts to economic uncertainty, rising construction costs, labor shortages and elevated financing expenses—all continued challenges for builders.
Regionally, on a year-to-date basis, starts were 11.7% higher in the Northeast but 3.0% lower in the South, 3.8% lower in the West and 4.5% lower in the Midwest. Single-family starts were down in all four regions.
Housing completions dropped 16.8% from July 2025 to a 1.21 million-unit annual rate, with single-family completions at an 878,000-unit pace, down 5.8% from June.
Read the full NAHB report here.
