A contractor works on a house under construction in Folsom, California, on May 18, 2023. Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg

U.S. housing starts unexpectedly surged in May—by the most since 2016—and applications to build increased, suggesting residential construction is on track to help fuel economic growth.

Beginning home construction jumped 21.7 percent, to a 1.63 million annualized rate, the fastest pace in more than a year, according to government data released Tuesday. The pace exceeded all projections in a Bloomberg survey of economists. Single-family homebuilding rose 18.5 percent, to an 11-month high.

Applications to build, a proxy for future construction, climbed 5.2 percent, to an annualized rate of 1.49 million units. Permits for one-family dwellings increased.

Metric Actual Est.
Housing starts (SAAR) 1.63 million 1.4 million
Single-family home starts (SAAR) 997,000 N/A
Building permits (SAAR) 1.49 million 1.425 million
Single-family home permits (SAAR) 897,000 N/A

The figures corroborate Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s comments last week that the housing market has shown signs of stabilizing. Homebuilders, which are responding to limited inventory in the resale market, have grown more upbeat as demand firms up, materials costs retreat, and supply-chain pressures ease.

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