Starts improved 10.5 percent, and permits increased by 11.0 percent, both in the month of November and in comparison to October.

Housing starts and permits both posted double-digit increases, while completions improved modestly, according to U.S. Census Bureau new residential construction data for the month of November.

There were 1,173,000 privately owned housing starts in the month, or 10.5 percent above October. This is also 16.5 percent higher on a year-over-year basis.

Of that total, 768,000 units were single-family homes. This is 7.6 percent better than October, and 14.6 percent higher compared to November 2014.

There were 398,000 buildings of five units or more started in November, an increase of 18.1 percent month-over-month, and a hike of 21.3 percent on an annual basis.

Building permits totaled 1,289,000 in November, an 11.0 percent jump over October. This is also 19.5 percent above November 2014.

Permits were issued for 723,000 single-family homes, an increase of 1.1 percent over October, and 9.0 percent higher year-over-year.

Multifamily housing, at 539,000 units, improved by 30.8 percent month-over-month, and 38.9 percent compared to November 2014.

There were 947,000 housing completions in November, a modest improvement of 3.2 percent over October, but a 9.2 percent increase year-over-year.

Single-family homes, at 632,000 units, were 0.3 percent above October, and 3.8 percent higher compared to November 2014.

The November rate for multifamily units was 306,000. This is a drop of 10.0 percent month-over-month, but a jump of 25.4 percent over November 2014.

U.S. Census Bureau: https://www.census.gov/economic-indicators/

Home Production Highest in Eight Years
Single-family starts increased 7.6 percent month-over-month, the highest production since January 2008, the National Association of Home Builders said.

"The November gains in both single- and multifamily starts show that the overall market continues to move forward," said Tom Woods, NAHB chairman. "As builders anticipate more consumer demand for housing, they should continue to add inventory."

"Single-family production this month has reached levels last seen before the Great Recession, an indicator that we are making gradual headway back to a normal housing market," said David Crowe, NAHB chief economist.

"As we close out the year, we can see that the housing sector has made headway in 2015, and we expect the recovery to continue at a modest pace," Crowe added.

Total starts, combining both single-family and multifamily, rose 21.4 percent in the South, and 6.3 percent in the West. The Midwest was unchanged, and the Northeast fell 8.5 percent.

National Association of Home Builders: https://tinyurl.com/zz3suy3

Existing Home Sales Plummet in November
Existing home sales in November fell to its lowest level since April 2014, the National Association of Realtors said.

Completed transactions of single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops plummeted 10.5 percent to 4.76 million units in November, compared to 5.32 million units in October. Sales are also 3.8 percent lower than November 2014 "?u the first year-over-year decrease since September 2014.

"Sparse inventory and affordability issues continue to impede a large pool of buyers' ability to buy, which is holding back sales," said Lawrence Yun, the NAR's chief economist. "However, signed contracts have remained mostly steady in recent months, and properties sold faster in November. Therefore, it's highly possible the stark sales decline wasn't because of sudden, withering demand."

Separately, single-family home sales dropped 12.1 percent to 4.15 million units in November, compared to 4.72 million units in October. Single-family sales are also 4.6 percent lower than the 4.35 million pace of a year ago. The median existing single-family home price was $221,600 in November, up 6.6 percent from November 2014.

Existing condominium and co-op sales increased 1.7 percent to 610,000 units in November, compared to 600,000 units in October, and are now 1.7 percent above November 2014 (600,000 units). The median existing condo price was $211,400 in November, or 4.7 percent higher than a year ago.

Regional Breakdown
Midwest "?u existing home sales dropped 15.4 percent to 1.10 million units on a month-over-month, and are now 2.7 percent below November 2014.

Northeast "?u sales declined 9.2 percent to 690,000 units compared to October, but are still 1.5 percent above a year ago.

South "?u sales fell 6.2 percent to 1.98 million units in November, and are 5.7 percent below November 2014.

West "?u home sales decreased 13.9 percent to 990,000 units in November, and are now 4.8 percent lower than a year ago.

National Association of Realtors: https://tinyurl.com/q3gtxp2

Single-Family Home Sales Rise in November
Sales of new single-family homes rose 4.3 percent to 490,000 units in November, compared to October, and increased 9.1 percent to 470,000 homes on a year-over-year basis, the U.S. Census Bureau said. A total of 470,000 units were sold in October 2015, and 449,000 homes were bought in November 2014. The median sales price of new houses sold in November was $305,000, and the average sales price was $374,900.

Roughly 232,000 new houses were available for sale at the end of November, representing a supply of 5.7 months at the current sales rate.

U.S. Census Bureau: https://tinyurl.com/otj589w