U.S. Census Bureau: Monthly New Residential Construction, May 2025

The U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development jointly announced the following new residential construction statistics for May 2025:

Building Permits

Privately-owned housing units authorized by building permits in May were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,393,000. This is 2.0 percent below the revised April rate of 1,422,000 and is 1.0 percent below the May 2024 rate of 1,407,000. Single-family authorizations in May were at a rate of 898,000; this is 2.7 percent below the revised April figure of 923,000. Authorizations of units in buildings with five units or more were at a rate of 444,000 in May.

Housing Starts

Privately-owned housing starts in May were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,256,000. This is 9.8 percent (±9.3 percent) below the revised April estimate of 1,392,000 and is 4.6 percent (±8.3 percent)* below the May 2024 rate of 1,316,000. Single-family housing starts in May were at a rate of 924,000; this is 0.4 percent (±10.9 percent)* above the revised April figure of 920,000. The May rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 316,000.

Housing Completions

Privately-owned housing completions in May were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,526,000. This is 5.4 percent (±12.0 percent)* above the revised April estimate of 1,448,000, but is 2.2 percent (±11.9 percent)* below the May 2024 rate of 1,561,000. Single-family housing completions in May were at a rate of 1,027,000; this is 8.1 percent (±12.1 percent)* above the revised April rate of 950,000. The May rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 487,000.

The June report is scheduled for release on July 18, 2025. View the full schedule in the Economic Briefing Room: <www.census.gov/economic-indicators/>. The full text and tables for this release can be found at <www.census.gov/construction/nrc/>.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau