US home construction starts falling for first time since August

Construction of new homes in the United States still remains above pre-pandemic levels thanks to record-low interest rates and a surge in demand from Americans seeking more space while stuck at home.

U.S. home-construction starts fell in January for the first time in five months, signaling that rising residential real estate prices may be constraining buyer demand. Residential starts dropped by 6% from the prior month to a 1.58 million annualized rate, according to government data released Thursday. The median in a Bloomberg survey of economists had called for a decline to a 1.66 million annualized rate.