Housing construction across the United States posted gains in July, but new data from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) shows the Western region dropped in starts and permits.

 
According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau, overall housing starts increased 5.2% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.43 million units. Single-family starts rose 2.8% to 939,000, while multifamily construction climbed 9.9% to 489,000.

Despite these national gains, the West reported a 0.5% year-to-date decline in total starts. Housing permits also trended downward, with the region seeing a 5.1% drop which was the steepest among all regions.

"Single-family production continues to operate at reduced levels due to ongoing housing affordability challenges, including persistently high mortgage rates, the skilled labor shortage and excessive regulatory costs," said NAHB Chairman Buddy Hughes.

The Western decline comes as the region faces some of the nation's highest housing costs, amplifying the impact of mortgage rates and construction expenses. With affordability challenges mounting, builders in the West appear to be pulling back, even as other parts of the country see modest growth.

https://www.nahb.org/news-and-economics/press-releases/2025/08/single-family-starts-edge-higher-but-affordability-challenges-persist