United States housing, fourth quarter 2014

In the fourth quarter the U.S. housing markets improved incrementally from quarter three. Total permits, single-family starts, new house sales, and single-family spending all improved modestly quarter-over-quarter. The majority of sectors increased on a year-over-year basis as well; only multifamily starts decreased, albeit minimally. Viewed from a recent historical context, all housing construction subsectors exceeded the record lows recorded in the 2008 to 2011 time period.