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US Building Permits & Housing Starts

Permits authorized and units started — total, single-family, and multi-family (with the 2-4 and 5+ unit breakdown). Sourced live from the US Census Bureau via FRED; SAAR.

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Building Permits
Privately-owned units authorized — SAAR; total, single- and multi-family
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Source: US Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey via FRED — PERMIT, PERMIT1, derived multi-family.
Building Permits — MoM % Change by Type
Percent change from prior month, by permit category
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Source: US Census Bureau via FRED — PERMIT, PERMIT1, PERMIT24, PERMIT5 (and derived multi-family total).
Multi-Family Permits Detail
5+ unit (left) vs. 2-4 unit (right) buildings — SAAR, dual axis
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Source: US Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey via FRED — PERMIT24, PERMIT5.
Housing Starts
Privately-owned units started — SAAR; total, single- and multi-family
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Source: US Census Bureau, Survey of Construction via FRED — HOUST, HOUST1F, derived multi-family.
Housing Starts — MoM % Change by Type
Total, single-family, multi-family — percent change from prior month
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Source: US Census Bureau via FRED — HOUST, HOUST1F (and derived multi-family).
Permits vs. Starts
Total SAAR — permits lead starts by ~1 month
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Source: US Census Bureau via FRED — PERMIT and HOUST, both SAAR.
Year-over-Year % Change
Permits and starts, total SAAR — cycle indicator
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Source: US Census Bureau via FRED — derived from SAAR totals.
Permits-to-Starts Ratio
Total permits ÷ total starts — above 1.0 = authorizing faster than breaking ground
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Source: US Census Bureau via FRED — PERMIT ÷ HOUST.