APARTMENT MARKET STATISTICS: March 2015

Multifamily housing starts (five-plus units) rose by 7.6 percent over the month of November 2014 to 340,000 units, according to the National Association of Home Builders.

Click here for multifamily market statistics from the March 2015 issue of MHN.

 

Housing starts of buildings with five or more units rose by 7.6 percent over the month of November 2014 to 340,000 units, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). This is the 14th consecutive month in which housing starts of buildings with five or more units eclipsed 300,000.

NAHB reports that over the past year, the prices of inputs to new construction increased by 0.6 percent. The prices of inputs to new non-residential construction were unchanged, but the prices of inputs to new residential construction grew by 1.2 percent.

Prices of gypsum products rose to 11.1 percent in November 2014, cement prices rose by 5.9 percent, and softwood plywood prices rose by 16.3 percent. However, oriented strand board (OSB) prices fell by 9.9 percent.

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association, multifamily financing volume by mortgage bankers rose from an index of 201 to 264 in the third quarter, compared to an index of 187 in the third quarter of 2013.