Home building rebounds

U.S. housing construction rebounded strongly in March with home builders recovering from an unusually frigid February that shut down projects.

Builders began construction on new homes and apartments at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.74 million units in March, the Commerce Department reported Friday, a 19.4% increase over February when housing construction fell by 11.3%.

According to the report, applications for building permits, a good sign of future activity, increased by 2.7% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.77 million units.

Economists expect housing construction to remain strong this year given the record low level of homes for sale. A new report from mortgage giant Freddie Mac concluded that the housing market is 3.8 million singlefamily homes short of what’s needed to meet demand — a 52% increase from a significant housing shortage in 2018.

Construction was up in all parts of the country except the West, which saw a 12.6% decline.