Residential construction was mixed in August as housing starts recovered in the single-family sector, while building permits declined from July levels and completions fell sharply. The latest Census Bureau data points to continued unevenness in residential construction, with builders pulling back somewhat on new authorizations even as single-family construction picked up.

Privately owned housing starts fell 2.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.275 million, down 1.2% from the August 2025 pace. Single-family starts, however, increased 7.6% to 918k, while starts for buildings containing five units or more fell to 344k.

Building permits moved in the opposite direction, declining 2.7% from July to an annual rate of 1.394 million, though they remained 3.5% above the August 2025 rate. Single-family authorizations fell 1.8% to 878k, while permits for buildings containing five units or more came in at 467k.

The August data underscores the uneven pace of residential construction. Single-family starts rebounded after falling in July, while permits softened modestly. The pullback in multi-family starts was more pronounced, although that segment can be considerably more volatile from month to month.

Housing completions also declined sharply in August, falling 11.9% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.128 million, down 27.1% from a year earlier. Single-family completions decreased 10.4% to 816k, while completions for buildings containing five units or more came in at 302k.