During these uncertain economic times, housing starts are searching for their footing.

The U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development recently announced their new joint residential construction statistics for June 2025. The figures show positive and negative trends, and that single-family and multifamily housing construction are not in sync.

According to the data, housing starts for June occurred at a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 1,321,000. The figure represents how many new homes would begin construction over the course of the year if activity continues at the measured monthly pace.

On a good note, the overall annualized rate is heading north, up 4.6% from the revised May estimate of 1,263,000 starts.

To put these figures into perspective, the annualized rate has fluctuated up and down over the past 12 months, with the June 2025 rate in the bottom third compared to other monthly rates during that time. It is slightly below the average for the past year, and it is 0.5% below the rate of 1,327,000 for June 2024. The highest monthly annualized rate during that time came in at 1,514,000 in December 2024.

The overall rate is a composite of rates for single-family and multifamily housing starts. Activity in both sectors varies and the rates tend to balance each other out.

Single-family homes had a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 883,000 starts in June of this year. This is a drop of 4.6% from the revised figure for May starts of 926,000. That figure has also fluctuated over the past 12 months, and it has been on a decline since March of this year.

On the other hand, multifamily starts are on a positive trend, which has compensated for the single-family decline. The adjusted annualized rate of starts for buildings with five or more units increased to 414,000 in June, up 30.6 % from the rate of 317,000 starts in May. It was also up 25.8% from the 329,000 annualized rate of starts for June 2024.

Analysts offer multiple explanations for the trend. According to the National Association of Homebuilders, factors such as interest rates, rising inventory, supply-side issues and affordability all contribute to the decrease in single-family starts.