Privately owned housing starts in November were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 625,000, according to the Commerce Department. This is 18.9 percent below the revised October estimate of 771,000 and is 47 percent below the revised November 2007 rate of 1.170 million. Single-family housing starts in November were at a rate of 441,000; this is 16.9 percent below the October figure of 531,000. The November rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 166,000.

New building permits, a measure of future construction activity, were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 616,000. This is 15.6 percent below the revised October rate of 730,000 and is 48.1 percent below the revised November 2007 estimate of 1.187 million. Single-family authorizations in November were at a rate of 412,000; this is 12.3 percent below the October figure of 470,000. Authorizations of units in buildings with five units or more were at a rate of 182,000 in November.

Privately owned housing completions in November were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.084 million, 3.3 percent above the revised October estimate of 1.049 million but 22.8 percent below the revised November 2007 rate of 1.404 million. Single-family housing completions in November were at a rate of 760,000; this is 0.9 percent above the October figure of 753,000. The November rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 301,000.