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June 19, 2018US HOUSING STARTS AND BUILDING PERMITS, MAY 2018 US residential construction permits, a leading indicator of new construction, declined 4.6 per cent in May 2018 compared to the revised April estimate, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,301,000. This is 8.0 per cent above the May 2017 estimate of 1,205,000. Permits for single unit structures declined by 2.2 per cent in May, while permits for structures with 5 units or more declined 8.5 per cent, and those for structures with 2 to 4 units declined by 12.2 per cent.
On a year-to-date basis, permits are up 6.6 per cent in the first five months of 2018 compared to the same period in 2017. Permits for structures with 2 to 4 units were up 14.3 per cent in the first five months of the year, while single unit permits were up 7.1 per cent and permits for structures with 5 or more units were up 4.9 per cent.
US housing starts were up 5.0 per cent in May 2018 compared to the revised April estimate, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,350,000 units. This month's estimate is 20.3 per cent above the May 2017 estimate of 1,122,000. Year-to-date, housing starts are up 10.2 per cent over the same five months in 2017.
US housing starts are an important indicator for Nova Scotia's wood exports. Though not a perfect predictor, US housing starts and the value of Nova Scotia's wood exports follow similar directions over the long-term.
Source: US Census Bureau New Residential Construction
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