Housing Starts Flat in June

Washington, DC, July 19—-Housing starts in June were unchanged at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 2.004 million, according to a Commerce Department report. Economists were expecting starts to reach a rate of 2.07 million in June. Starts of single-family homes fell 2.5% in June to a 1.667 million annualized rate. Starts on multifamily dwellings increased 14.2% to 337,000. Building permits for new housing increased by 2.4% to a 2.111 million rate in June from 2.062 million in May. Permits for single-family homes increased 1.3%, reaching 1.649 million. Housing starts in May were revised slightly lower to a 2.004 million rate from 2.009 million estimated last month. Housing starts during the month fell in every region of the nation except the South, where they increased 11.4%. Starts in the West fell 10.4% to the lowest rate since November.