The pace of new-home construction rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.957 million units. This was 3.8 percent below the pace of a year ago. At the same time, permit issuance dipped to a monthly rate of 1.932 million units. This was 8.5 percent behind the May 2005 pace.

?EUR??,,????'??The rebound in total housing starts for May primarily reflected typical volatility in the multifamily market, and the modest increase in single-family starts largely reflected a build-out of units that had been sold and permitted earlier,?EUR??,,????'?? said NAHB Chief Economist David Seiders.

Single-family housing starts were up 2.1 percent in May to a pace of 1.586 million units for the month. Multifamily housing construction rose 19.7 percent for the month to a seasonally adjusted pace of 371,000 units.

Three of four regions reported increases in housing starts for the month. Construction of new homes and apartments rose 1.7 percent in the Northeast, 8.5 percent in the South and 15.8 percent in the West. Housing starts were down 15.8 percent in the Midwest, following a sizeable increase in April.

?EUR??,,????'??Today?EUR??,,????'???s reported increase in housing starts is not inconsistent with an ongoing moderate erosion of housing market activity, a pattern shown by both today?EUR??,,????'???s permit numbers and NAHB?EUR??,,????'???s surveys of single-family home builders,?EUR??,,????'?? Seiders said.