Home construction hits five-month low

By: Nathalie Weinstein//June 16, 2010//

Home construction hits five-month low

Nathalie Weinstein//June 16, 2010//

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Both new residential construction housing starts and building permits declined in May, showing the lowest figures since December 2009, according to a report by the U.S. Department of Commerce.

Nationally, only 593,000 privately-owned housing starts and 468,000 single-family housing starts were reported in May, a 10 percent and 17.2 percent decline from April, respectively.

Building permits for privately-owned housing units declined 5.9 percent, while permits for single-family starts declined 9.9 percent between April and May.

Jim Nicks, inspection divisions manager for Portland’s Bureau of Development Services, says his department has seen fewer new residential construction permits in general since a federal tax incentive for first-time home buyers expired in April.