California Housing Starts Post Decline in September, CBIA Announces

SACRAMENTO, CA – October 26, 2010 – (RealEstateRama) — Total housing production in California posted a decrease for the first time in five months in September, the California Building Industry Association announced today.

According to statistics compiled by the Construction Industry Research Board (CIRB), permits were pulled for 2,562 total housing units in September, down 16 percent from the same month a year ago and down 31 percent from August. Permits for single-family homes totaled 1,604, down 30 percent from September 2009 and down 14 percent from the previous month, while multifamily permits totaled 958, up 27 percent from a year ago but down 48 percent from August.

For the first nine months of the year, permits were pulled for 32,025 units, up 17 percent when compared to the same period in 2009 when 27,267 permits were issued. Single-family permits were up 1 percent while multifamily permits rose 53 percent.

Liz Snow, CBIA’s President and CEO, said the numbers were a clear indication that the housing industry still has a ways to go before getting back to healthy production levels.

“It’s good to see that we’re still doing better than last year, but as the economy continues to struggle in the wake of the foreclosure crisis and double-digit unemployment, it could be some time before the housing industry sees any meaningful recovery,” said Snow. “Creating jobs and restoring our state’s economy should be top priority for our lawmakers. The sooner we get job-generating home construction back to healthy levels, the better for the economy.”

Snow noted that CIRB has revised its housing forecast downward from 46,500 to 45,000 total units in 2010, and is projecting a modest increase to 74,000 units in 2011. The 2008, 2009, and forecast 2010 and 2011 totals are lower than in any prior year on record, with the previous lows set in 1982 and 1993 with 85,656 and 84,656 units, respectively.

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The California Building Industry Association is a statewide trade association representing thousands of homebuilders, remodelers, subcontractors, architects, engineers, designers, and other industry professionals. More information is available on the Association’s Web site, www.cbia.org.

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Media Contact:
Michael Castillo
Communications Manager
(916) 443-7933 ext. 346
mcastillo (at) cbia (dot) org