Privately-owned housing units authorized by building permits in December 2008 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 549,000, down 10.7 percent from November and 50.6 percent from December 2007.
Private housing starts were at an annual rate of 550,000 last December. This is 15.5 percent below November and 45 percent below December 2007.
Housing completions in December 2008 were at an annual rate of 1,015,000. This is 5.2 percent below November and 23.6 percent below December 2007.
It is hard to imagine a more negative report, although we may have to, given the million-unit housing overhang I heard about last October (See the November 4 post’s October 30 entry.) It may well be that the collapse of the housing bubble is the shock that is driving this recession—and driving it into the “longer recession” category.
Our next look at the new residential construction data will come February 18. Will you dare to keep your hands in the air and off the grab bar?
With only a very few reports left to go this month, the good news index (GNI) stands at 16.7 percent for January releases.
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