Home Building Unexpectedly Fell Sharply in February

U.S. homebuilding slowed sharply in February as extreme winter weather took hold of much of the country.

Housing starts dropped 10.3 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.421 million units last month, the Commerce Department said on Wednesday. Economists had expected a rate of 1.57 million.

The January number was revised up by 4,000 starts to 1.584 million.

Single-family housing starts in February came in at a rate of 1,040,000, .5 percent below the revised January figure of 1,136,000.

Permit applications fell to an annual rate of 1.682 million, below January’s upwardly revised rate of 1.886 million and below expectations for 1.75 million.

Single-family authorizations in February were at a rate of 1,143,000, 10.0 percent below the revised January figure of 1,270,000.

Starts were down in the Northeast, the South, and the Midwest, both on a monthly basis and annual basis. Starts were up in the West, rising 17.6 percent from January and up 15.8 percent from a year ago. Single-family starts were also up in the West, climbing 22 percent from a month earlier and 38.4 percent from a year ago.