Come feel the noise! After steady growth in 1-unit housing starts under Trump, housing starts have been eratic under Biden despite the foreign invasion force of millions … of low wage workers.
![](https://confoundedinterest.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/hs1rate.png?w=1024)
For context, this is the largest MoM drop in housing starts since the COVID lockdowns…
![](https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/inline-images/bfm9894.jpg?itok=ffQdewA-)
Source: Bloomberg
It was a bloodbath across the board with Rental Unit Starts plummeting 20.8% MoM…
![](https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/inline-images/bfmE257_1.jpg?itok=Retih89P)
Source: Bloomberg
That pushed total multi-family starts SAAR down to its lowest since COVID lockdowns…
![](https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/inline-images/image%20-%202024-04-16T053738.789.png?itok=4bOxNmBF)
The plunge in permits was less dramatic and driven completely by single-family permits down 5.7% to 973K SAAR, from 1.032MM, this is the lowest since October. Multi-family permits flat at 433K
![](https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/inline-images/image%20-%202024-04-16T054152.289.png?itok=_WMDvTKC)
Intriguingly, while starts and completions plunged in March, the BLS believes that construction jobs surged to a new record high…
![](https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/inline-images/bfm9E9B.jpg?itok=Xmnazojw)
Source: Bloomberg
Finally, just what will homebuilders do now that expectations for 2024 rate-cuts have collapsed?
![](https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/inline-images/bfmF7C4.jpg?itok=YFRxVRlJ)
Source: Bloomberg
One thing is for sure – do not trust what homebuilders ‘say’ (as NAHB confidence jumped to its highest since May 2022 at the same time as housing starts crashed)…
![](https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/inline-images/bfmA926_0.jpg?itok=29Dx2BUt)
Source: Bloomberg
If they build them, will homebuyers come?
![](https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/inline-images/bfm441D_0.jpg?itok=fvjsPveW)
Source: Bloomberg