With Multifamily Decline, Housing Starts Fall 14.4 Percent

Led by a steep 31.7 percent decline in multifamily production, nationwide housing starts fell 14.4 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 956,000 units in August, according to newly released figures from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau. Single-family housing starts dropped 2.4 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 643,000 units.

"The August drop in multifamily starts is not too surprising, given how volatile the numbers have been the last 18 months," said David Crowe, chief economist of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB).  "And while single-family starts registered a slight decline, low mortgage rates, affordable home prices and pent-up demand will keep single-family production moving forward in 2014."