【Zillow】January 2026 Housing Starts: Sluggish Single-family Construction To Begin The Year As Inventory Rises

• Building permits issued in January fell to 1,376,000 (SAAR). That’s 5.4% below the revised December rate and is 5.8% lower than in January 2025. Single-family permits were at a rate of 873,000 in January. This is 11.6% lower than the previous year.
• Housing starts increased to 1,487,000 (SAAR) in January, up 7.2% from the revised December estimate and 9.5% higher than in January 2025, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
• Single-family housing starts fell to 935,000 (SAAR) in January, roughly 2.8% lower than the December estimate but still 6.5% lower than in January 2025.

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