U.S. Census Bureau: Monthly New Residential Construction, October 2022

Notice of methodology change: Beginning with the January New Residential Construction release on February 16, 2023, the Building Permits survey will change its target universe from the current 2014 basis to an annually updated universe. This change will allow for more accurate and quicker coverage when jurisdictions change from not issuing building permits to issuing them.

For additional details on this change and the impact on New Residential Construction, see our 2023 Methodology Change FAQs.

The U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development jointly announced the following new residential construction statistics for October 2022:

Building Permits

Privately-owned housing units authorized by building permits in October were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,526,000. This is 2.4 percent below the revised September rate of 1,564,000 and is 10.1 percent below the October 2021 rate of 1,698,000. Single-family authorizations in October were at a rate of 839,000; this is 3.6 percent below the revised September figure of 870,000. Authorizations of units in buildings with five units or more were at a rate of 633,000 in October.

Housing Starts

Privately-owned housing starts in October were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,425,000. This is 4.2 percent (±12.7 percent)* below the revised September estimate of 1,488,000 and is 8.8 percent (±12.7 percent)* below the October 2021 rate of 1,563,000. Single-family housing starts in October were at a rate of 855,000; this is 6.1 percent (±13.4 percent)* below the revised September figure of 911,000. The October rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 556,000.

Housing Completions

Privately-owned housing completions in October were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,339,000. This is 6.4 percent (±10.6 percent)* below the revised September estimate of 1,431,000, but is 6.6 percent (±12.6 percent)* above the October 2021 rate of 1,256,000. Single-family housing completions in October were at a rate of 961,000; this is 8.3 percent (±8.2 percent) below the revised September rate of 1,048,000. The October rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 362,000.

For the full October report, click here.

The November report is scheduled for release on December 20, 2022.  View the full schedule in the Economic Briefing Room: https://www.census.gov/economic-indicators/. The full text and tables for this release can be found at: https://www.census.gov/construction/nrc/index.html.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau