Housing permits and starts fell to record lows in November, the government said Tuesday, in the latest sign that the housing market is continuing its decline.
Housing permits fell more than 15% to an annual rate of 616,000 last month, the Commerce Department said, while starts slid nearly 19% to an annual rate of 625,000.
“[Housing permits and starts] are startlingly low and really underscore the degree to which builders are cutting back aggressively on construction,” said Mike Larson, a real estate analyst for the Weiss Group. “We still have too many homes for sale on the market.”
The reports were much lower than expected.
The Commerce Department was expected to report an annual rate of 700,000 building permits for November, according to a consensus of opinion compiled by Briefing.com.
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