The Economics and Statistics Division maintains archives of previous publications for accountability purposes, but makes no updates to keep these documents current with the latest data revisions from Statistics Canada. As a result, information in older documents may not be accurate. Please exercise caution when referring to older documents. For the latest information and historical data, please contact the individual listed to the right.
<--- Return to Archive
For additional information relating to this article, please contact:
May 01, 2026US HOUSING STARTS AND BUILDING PERMITS, MARCH 2026 Month over month (March 2026 vs February 2026, seasonally adjusted annualized rates)
US housing starts were up 10.8% from February to March, rising to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 1,502,000 units. There were increases in single unit starts (+9.7%) as well as in multi-unit dwelling starts (+13.3%).
The number of residential building permits were down 10.8% to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 1,372,000 units. Permits were down more for multiple units (-21.5%) than for single units (-3.8%).
Year over year (March 2026 vs March 2025)
Compared to the same month last year, US housing starts were up (+10.8%), with increases in multiple unit starts (+15.5%) as well as in single unit starts (+8.9%).
Residential building permits were down (-7.4%) year-over-year, with decreases in single units (-7.9%) as well as in multi-unit structures (-6.3%).
Year-to-date (January-March 2026 vs January-March 2025)
In the first three months of 2026, US housing starts were up 1.3%, with declines in single unit starts (-5.7%) and increases in multi-unit starts (+19.7%).
Residential building permits were down 2.3% year-to-date, with decreases in single units (-8.5%) and increases in multi-unit structures (+10.5%).
Note: multi-unit refers to structures with 2-4 units as well as structures were more than 5 units.
Source: US Census Bureau New Residential Construction
<--- Return to Archive
