US Single-Family Housing Starts Reach 13-Month High in March

Building permits for privately owned housing units dropped by 10.8 percent from February.

Construction workers build homes at a new housing development in Hercules, Calif., on July 1, 2025. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

For the first time in more than a year, privately owned housing units saw a significant increase in starts in March, possibly signaling forward movement in the home construction sector.

The Census Bureau’s Monthly New Residential Construction Report, issued on April 29, indicated that housing starts in March on a seasonally adjusted annual basis saw a 10.8 percent increase from February’s revised estimate of 1,356,000 to 1,502,000. The March data also represent a 10.8 percent rise above the March 2025 rate of 1,355,000.