Housing starts for all of 2008 fell 33% to 904,000 -- the lowest level of new construction since the federal government began keeping records in 1959, the Commerce Department said. In 2007, housing starts totaled 1.36 million units.
In December 2008, housing starts fell to a 550,000-unit annual rate. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg News had expected December 2008 housing starts to total a 625,000 annualized pace.
Also in December 2008, building permits fell 10.7% to a 549,000 annualized pace. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg News had expected December 2008 building permits to total a 616,000 annualized rate.
Meanwhile, permits to build single-family homes fell 12.3% to a 363,000 annualized rate in December 2008.
Housing: hard to get any lower
Economist Peter Dawson told BloggingStocks Thursday the only silver lining in the most recent housing sector report is the notion that the U.S. housing sector has no where to go but up.
"The anemic housing starts in December indicate that the recession is deepening," Dawson said. "It's hard to envision housing activity slowing any more than it did in December. Of course, it can deteriorate even more, but the point is that there's now much more upside to housing activity than downside."
Still, Dawson cautioned that "a housing construction bottom can take 3-4 months to form," and with inventories at high levels that does not mean home prices are bottoming. Home prices are likely to continue to decline through most of 2009, he said, "but given that builders have radically cut back construction, inventories should begin to decline by mid-year, marking the start of housing's recovery process."
Housing Analysis: Yet another ignominious housing statistic, for both December 2008 and the recently-completed year. Without question, 2008 will go down as the worst year in U.S. housing, in terms of permits, construction, rising inventories, and declining prices in at least 20 years.
Closing Bell: When We All Love the PIIGS (NBG, SQNM, PG, ERTS, KO)
Serious Money: Cheapest Stocks List Shrinks from 26 to 21
Chasing Value: Hasbro Earnings Makes My Point
