Housing Starts Jump 3.6% to Four-Year High

Housing starts rose 3.6% in October to the highest level in four years, the Commerce Department said Tuesday.

Starts rose to an annual rate of 894,000 units, the fastest since July 2008, from a revised 863,000 in September, which were originally reported at 872,000.

The October level was higher than economists’ median forecast of a 840,000 rate, Bloomberg reported.

Single-family home starts fell 0.2% to a 594,000 rate.

Work on multifamily units, which are often more volatile, increased 11.9% to an annual rate of 300,000.

Two of four regions showed a gain, led by a 17% rise in the West and a 8.9% increase in the Midwest.  In the Northeast new construction showed a 6.5% decline and the South had a 2.5% drop.