Housing Starts Drop Sharply, Led by Multifamily Pullback

Building permits decreased 0.7% in May and 0.2% over the year. Permits for single-family homes in May rose 0.6% but fell 1.8% over the year. At the same time, permits for buildings with five or more units declined 3.5% from April but increased 3.0% over the year.

In May, housing starts fell 15.4% from April and 8.7% over the year. Starts for single-family homes moved down 1.9% from April and 6.7% over the year. Meanwhile, starts for buildings with five or more units plummeted 41.6% over the month and 12.3% over the year.

Housing completions stepped down 8.1% over the month and 14.2% over the year. Single-family home completions decreased 1.6% from April and 16.8% from May 2025. At the same time, completions for buildings with five or more units fell 19.3% over the month and 8.4% from one year ago.