United States Building Permits

Building permits in the United States soared by 6.1% to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 1.505 million in November of 2024, erasing the 0.4% decline from the previous month and firmly above market expectations that it would have risen to 1.43 million. It was the sharpest increase since February 2023, lifting permits to their highest annualized level since February 2024. Single-family permits rose by 0.1% to an annualized rate of 972 thousand, while permits for building with five or more units soared by 22.1% to 481 thousand. These were enough to offset the 3.7% drop in buildings of two to four units, which totaled a rate of 52 thousand. Permits grew in all regions of the US, including the South (5.7% to 798 thousand), Midwest (10.7% to 217 thousand), the Northeast (11.3% to 158 thousand), and the West (1.8% to 332 thousand).