New home building slump worst since 1991
WASHINGTON -- Construction of new homes fell to the lowest level in more than a decade in July as builders continued to struggle with the steepest housing slump since 1991.
The Commerce Department reported Thursday that construction of new homes and apartments dropped 6.1 percent last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.38 million units. That was down 20.9 percent from the pace of activity a year ago and represented the slowest pace since January 1997.
The housing industry, which had enjoyed a prolonged boom until 2006, has been struggling this year with a deepening slump as builders are slashing prices and throwing in various incentives in an effort to unload record levels of unsold homes. The problems have been worsened by rising home foreclosures, especially in the subprime market, a development which is dumping even more homes onto the glutted market.
WASHINGTON -- Construction of new homes fell to the lowest level in more than a decade in July as builders continued to struggle with the steepest housing slump since 1991.
The Commerce Department reported Thursday that construction of new homes and apartments dropped 6.1 percent last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.38 million units. That was down 20.9 percent from the pace of activity a year ago and represented the slowest pace since January 1997.
The housing industry, which had enjoyed a prolonged boom until 2006, has been struggling this year with a deepening slump as builders are slashing prices and throwing in various incentives in an effort to unload record levels of unsold homes. The problems have been worsened by rising home foreclosures, especially in the subprime market, a development which is dumping even more homes onto the glutted market.
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