FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, August 16, 2012
CONTACT OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS
202-482-4883

The Commerce Department’s U.S. Census Bureau today released new residential construction data (PDF) for July 2012. Permits for new housing units were up 6.8 percent from June and up 29.5 percent from July 2011. Housing starts for July 2012 were down 1.1 percent from June, but up 21.5 percent from July 2011.  

“The housing sector continues to improve, as data released today shows permits are at their highest level since August 2008 and housing starts are up 24.9 percent in the first seven months of this year compared to last,” said Acting U.S. Commerce Secretary Rebecca Blank. “Specifically, today’s numbers show improvements for both the single- and multi-family housing sectors. Other measures of the housing market are also showing signs of improvement, including recent increases in house prices and home builder sentiment. But more work remains to help responsible homeowners and strengthen the middle class, so Congress should pass President Obama’s proposals to cut taxes for 98 percent of Americans and cut red tape so responsible homeowners can refinance to take advantage of today’s historically low interest rates.”