U.S. housing starts ran at an annual pace of 1,221,000, adjusted for normal seasonal swings, in September 2026, 5.2% below August's revised rate and the lowest since May, the Census Bureau and HUD said on Oct. 20. The Census Bureau said the change was not statistically significant. Building permits were 1,400,000, 0.2% below August.
What did the September 2026 housing starts report show?
Starts ran 5.2% below August's revised 1,288,000 and 7.4% below the 1,319,000 of September 2025. The Census Bureau said neither change was statistically significant (Census Bureau, New Residential Construction, September 2026).
The margin of error for the monthly change, ±11.8% at 90% confidence, includes zero, so the agency said it cannot conclude that starts actually changed.
Single-family starts were 859,000, 4.6% below August and 2.6% above September 2025; neither change was statistically significant.
Starts in buildings with five or more units were 349,000, 25.9% below a year earlier, a statistically significant difference.
Starts in the West were 23.2% below August, a statistically significant decline.
Single-family permits were 845,000, 4.0% below August and the lowest since March 2023.
Completions were 1,192,000, 14.0% below September 2025, a statistically significant difference.
The backlog of homes authorized but not yet started was 279,000, the highest of the 13 months in the release, and 9.8% above a year earlier, a statistically significant increase.
September figures are preliminary. To see what a rate shift or a housing move could mean for your own accounts, model the scenario with Silvia.
When is the next housing starts report, and what else is coming?
New-home sales, September 2026 (Census/HUD): Oct. 27, 10 a.m. ET.
Federal Reserve policy statement: Oct. 28, 2 p.m. ET.
Construction spending, September 2026 (Census): Nov. 2, 10 a.m. ET.
Housing starts and permits, October 2026 (Census/HUD): Nov. 18, 8:30 a.m. ET, with revisions to September.
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Monthly New Residential Construction, September 2026 (with HUD), Release CB26-162, Oct. 20, 2026, 8:30 a.m. ET, historical permits table and 2026 release schedule; Federal Reserve, FOMC calendar.
Silvia News is for information only and is not investment advice.
